Bloodlines Run Deep But Friends Come First
by CrossoverxToxThexDarkxSide
Summary: Rikuo, leader of a human gang, has lots of problems. He hates youkai, but is forced to stay with the Nura Clan, a youkai clan. Then he remembers. That he's Rikuo Nura, grandson of Nurarihyon. His loyalty is stretched to the limit. How can he stay with his gang knowing the truth? Who will take revenge for his father? Can Rikuo save himself from the same fate ? NO SLASH AU
1. The Famous Deathside Demons Leader

**Slight AU. Nue/Seimei does not exist, but Hagoromo-Kitsune does. Everything else you'll discover.**

**No Yaoi.**

**Cursing ahead. T for everything. Rikuo will be OOC, because he's raised differently and such has a different personality. I promise, he will be the Rikuo we all know and love by the end.**

**Italics = Thoughts**

**I can't wait for the OVA in December. We get to see what Rihan was doing in military garb!**

**Full Summary:**

**Rikuo's been shuffled from home to home since his abusive family died, he curses his ability to see youkai, and he's also the leader of the most powerful gang in Hiroshi, The Deathside Demons at the age of 15. But when he visits a town called Ukiyoe to set up trade, things take an unusual turn. He encounters the largest Youkai clan, and discover he's part youkai. Something else is up, and new problems are popping up for his gang every day. Can he balance his loyalty with his gang and the new family he won't admit he's found?**

**This chapter was edited on November 4th. If you read this chapter before then, some things may have changed. The next chapter will be edited and posted soon. If you are just now finding this story, and/or gave up the story earlier, please reread this chapter**

* * *

******10 years ago.  
**It was a beautiful night to walk through the gardens, and three figures were taking advantage of it. Cherry blossoms fell silently, and the night wind keep the hot air away.

Rihan Nura, the famous half-youkai son of Nurarihyon, and well-known leader of the Nura clan was easily the most distinguishable of the three. Pure wavy black hair that defied gravity, gold eyes, and relaxed pose suggested something different then a prankster who liked to slip his bodyguards, or the powerful leader who defeated the Hyaku Monogatari clan.  
He was currently dressed in his usual garb, a kimono with green and black stripes and a white cloth draped over his shoulders.

The smallest figure, with his childish laughter and matching grin, was Rihan's quarter youkai son Rikuo Nura, dressed in a yutaka and red haori. His hair was nothing like his father's, with short chocolate brown hair, which darkened closer to the boy's neck.

It was hard to believe but when little Rikuo grew up, he would have to choice to become the 3rd head of the Nura Clan, which was one of the largest youkai clan with over 10,000 youkai members. Right now though, he was a childish 4 year old who wanted nothing more than to play tricks on his youkai attendants, avoid baths, and dine and dash with his grandfather, the Supreme Commander of the Nura Clan, Nurarihyon.

The last figure was a teenage girl, with pale skin and long black hair dressed in a simple black dress. She resembled Rihan's first wife, and was invited to play by the innocent Rikuo.

Rihan was currently the 2nd heir, and he was busy with bringing forth a stronger Nura clan then his father. Rihan married a human sometime after his first wife Yamabuki Otome. She was Wakana and strong-willed and optimistic person. Rikuo was born sometime after, and a new happiness took over the Nura headquarters, replacing the depression from when Yamabuki left.

While Rihan had always be in tune with his youkai side, Rikuo was born human and had yet to show he had any youkai in him at all. Many of the Nura members openly showed their displeasure at this, comparing Rikuo to his father, which just wasn't fair.

Since Rikuo remained human, Rihan and Wakana swore to keep Rikuo away from the dangerous youkai side of the world as much as possible, and his attendants were sworn as well. They faithfully followed these instructions.

Rikuo, having spotted something interesting ran ahead, leaving his father and 'friend' behind.  
Rihan stopped and watched the kerria plants release their petals in the wind of the night. He spoke a poem very close to his heart, the same one that his first wife left as a goodbye note, grief heavy in his voice.

"Flowers bloom sevenfold and eightfold, but the kerria laments, for not a single fruit does it bear."

That was the code. The code to kill Rihan.

* * *

A scream was heard from the gardens, silencing the sake drinking party being held inside.  
"Rikuo-sama?" Yuki-Onna, the ice maiden, was very familiar with that voice, but usually it was filled with warmth and happiness, not cold fear. She dropped the plate of sake, before dashing out to the gardens, sensing the quickly fading Fear from the 2nd Head. The other youkai rushed behind her towards the sound of the scream.  
Yuki-onna screamed, and the two assault officers leapt to her side, expecting an attack, not the 2nd Head surrounded by his own blood, dead on the ground.

"Rihan!" Wakana burst into tears upon seeing the scene, rushing to her beloved's side.  
Nurarihyon was silent, his face taut with anger, and a tight grip of his sword. It was apparent that Rihan was only dead for a few minutes, so the murderers must had been close by.  
"Rikuo-sama! Rikuo? Please come out! It's not hide and seek time! Rikuo?" Yuki-onna, noticing a missing person, began her frantic calling, her voice became more strained.  
"I was supposed to protect Rikuo-sama." She choked, before breaking into tears, fearing the worse.

"Spread out! I want Rikuo AND the murderer found!" The Nura Clan jumped into action.

The youkai said nothing, and the smaller grouped into pairs while spreading out to cover the garden, while Rikuo's attendants and the remaining youkai took the search outside the gate. Word was sent out to all the members. Rikuo was missing, and Rihan was dead. The killer was to be found.

It was considered the day the Nura Clan died.

Neither the murderer or Rikuo was found.

* * *

He propped a chair up by the door, to keep Beni out for a short while anyway. No doors had locks in the house, a rule followed by most fosters. Some went farther and had no doors, but that was rare.

The teen silently opened his window, having greased it last night to prevent that squeak that almost got him caught. He jumped down, before closing the window and placing a piece of wood to keep it from closing and locking him out.

The boy wheeled his bike out from its hidden location behind the trees, hopped on, and set off for tonight's fight. He veered off course, towards where he kept his gang gear in the safety of a locked box in the abandoned building nearby. He leaned his bike against the wall, and pulled out the metal box. He unlocked it with ease, having done this a thousand times without light, and threw on his jacket, with the Deathside Demons symbol on the back, as well as his protective gloves. He removed his glasses, and changed to more comfortable shoes. The full moon was perfect for a fight tonight, and it set his blood afire.  
Hidden in the box was his special Tora-oni, or Tiger Demon, a 3 feet long metal sword specially crafted for him when he took over the Deathside Demons, an upgrade from his previous sword that was destroyed before he became commander. He withdrew it slightly from its sheath, before slipping it through its holder on his belt.  
He locked the box back up, before setting off for his gang's current meeting place.

* * *

"Rikuo-sama's here!"  
The lowest members of his gang, who usually lasted less than a month, greeted him as he arrived. More members flooded out of the current meeting place, each with a weapon and a urge to fight.  
Even with his rather short stature, he could still strike fear into the hearts of his opponents. He had proven himself to be an excellent fighter, almost as good as Fujimoto at planning and strategies, and smart enough to retain his cover the two times he needed to.

He had taken the ropes from the previous leader, who was now serving time for a framed robbery.  
He didn't know it at the time, but the leader was training Rikuo to take his place. He was in charge of numerous raids before that, and had proven his worth to all of the higher ranked Demons, and most of the lower ones followed him without worry as well. Injury and death was almost unheard of, except for the times that you strayed from the orders.

Good luck then.

His previous guidance counselors all claimed he had some famous general or something in his bloodline, considering how often he was placed in charge of school groups. He could care less then shit about them. He had limited memories of his parents, and they were rather abusive anyway, other than his brother Shuu.

He rode through the warehouse that was the current home to the Demons, checking over the newest supply and shipments. Rikuo had increased the range of the gang dramatically, and the gang already had two other locations, one in Ukiyoe, the other of the other side of Japan. They were under trusted commanders, who were skilled enough to run with Rikuo on almost everything. Some decisions were still up to Rikuo, but that was a rare occurrence.

By merging with another gang, they gained a new supply. Of toilet paper.  
It was a quick sell, so the shipment was moving out tonight. The few members who didn't fight were in charge of that.  
"Greetings Rikuo-sama!"  
"It's a great night for a fight!"  
"Don't get hurt tonight, Ri-kun!"  
He sighed as he went by the fangirl Akita, who was always one for familiarity. She was someone you never wanted to get caught with alone, and Rikuo had fought off her advances more than once.

He stopped near the entrance of his bike tour, having spotted three of his most important Demons.  
"Is everyone here, Fujimoto?"  
"Hai Rikuo-sama." Fujimoto was a badass girl with a hatred of jerks and the color red. She kept her long dyed black hair in two small buns, and was studying to become a nurse. She joined the Deathside Demons because they were the most friendly gang around. Most of the fights were to destroy gangs who did cowardice things, ranging from raping and stealing. It was also the only gang that accepted girls easily. She was the 2nd in command, having proven her fighting and strategy skills long ago. She was stubborn and headstrong, but very calculated. She was also the one who kept the previous leader on a tight leash, as he was very charismatic and known to dash headlong into things.

Next to her was Yasuo and Kunai Morioka.  
Yasuo was the 3rd in command, and was loyal to the, slightly large, bone. He was one of the first to follow Rikuo, and was repaid greatly for it. He relied on his Nagamaki, which had been passed down to him from his father. Those around him knew he had a crush on Fujimoto, but she was working for her career, not a boyfriend. Yasuo was training to become a lawyer, and such was the best for the stupid members who needed to escape jail. When he graduated college, he would probably go on to become a top lawyer. He joined to make extra cash, but had stuck around long after that.

Kunai Morioka was the shortest at 5 feet and the only natural blonde of the gang, and the unofficial mascot. Although the girls thought he was super adorable, give him set of throwing knives, and you'd be dead meat. Even his martial art skills were better than most. No one was sure exactly how old Morioka was, and only Rikuo knew why he joined the gang in the first place. He had quite a temper, and was rarely far from Rikuo at all times. He was Rikuo's bodygaurd, and took his job very seriously.  
Kunai joined Rikuo sometime after Rikuo joined the Demons, and wasn't an official member, but he was loyal to Rikuo 100%, and regularly passed messages and orders.

Rikuo took his place in front of the crowd, before getting their attention.

"The Smoking Scorpions have invaded our territory." The gang members booed.  
"They have preyed on the innocent. Blackmailed our customers. Refused to meet with me and settle this peacefully." More boos.  
"They have done everything against the Deathside Demons' Code. It ends tonight. We shall obliterate their gang and return peace to Hiroshi."  
Rikuo let a rather evil smirk grace his face as fists went up in agreement, some with the Deathside Demons' tattoo, others with weapons.

Other gangs and a few Demons said this nightly hunting was like a Hyakki Yakō, which only irritated Rikuo, due to the fact he was trying to get away from anything youkai related.  
He withdrew Tora-oni, before raising it to the sky.  
"We're hunting rats till dawn!"

* * *

The walls shook from the bass of the music, while sweaty socks and the smell of hair dye filled the air. Flakes of paint were peeling off the wall with every thump of the speakers. Rock posters hung on the black painted walls, and the room looked like a typical slob of a teenage boy.  
"Rikuo, you son of a bitch! Turn that damn music off and get down here! The school-bus will be here in a minute!"  
The blob of blankets on the bed grabbed the remote off the nearby table, and turned the music up even louder to spite the foster-mother known as Beni.  
_Hell on Earth is more like it._  
The speakers compiled for a short 30 seconds, before overloading and dying, with a noise best described as a sad sigh.

He'd have to let Tanaka, his best engineer, take a look at them again. Tonight hopefully. He didn't want to buy another set of speakers. He was trying to save up to move out. Not spend it on useless purchases.

Curses were muffled under the blankets, before the blob finally threw the blankets off. Even though the fight took a short time last night, he still wasn't tired. He was never tired, and he took this as a good thing.

Black ruffled short hair was seen first, followed by the the brown eyes of a disgruntled teen. He took his last clean shirt and pants from last night. He grabbed his backpack, and stuffed the mostly completed homework in it and Hamiltonian, his trusted knife, which had saved him from more situations than he knew. Against humans, anyway.

He glanced in the mirror, mostly satisfied with what he saw. His brown roots were starting to show, and a glance in the drawer told him he was out, so he would have to ask Fujimoto to hook him up. He grabbed his small allowance off his dresser for lunch, and placed in it in his wallet, which was full from last night's fight. Even though the gang was small in member size compared to other gangs, it reached farther than others did. They still had quite an amount of merchandise which was sold for a nice profit. His gang was successfully mostly because every member followed a code of conduct. Those who didn't, weren't heard from. The rules weren't very extensive, but mostly it made sure that no one was killed for trivial reasons. (The cops looked down on that) Customers liked that, and such flocked to the Deathside Demons.

He grabbed his glasses on the dresser, and slipped out the window to the school-bus as it pulled up. He took a seat in the back, before setting to work on his paperwork/homework, separated by two files. Anyone who paid attention to the weirdest kid in school say he spent more time filling out paperwork than homework.

No one ever did though.

His number one goal was graduate ASAP, to escape from the foster system. And he couldn't do that by flunking. He was also saving up money with help frominvestment in stocks and bonds, courtesy of Hakuhi, the gang's top investor.

Rikuo Nishimura. That was his adopted name. Last name was common enough not to attract attention, but not rare enough to attract attention either. He was 15, and short for his age, unfortunately. He kept his hair dyed black, and stayed out of school trouble. He spent most of his time working for the gang, and had little time to socialize. And such, had no friends at school. His current social worker wished that was different, but Rikuo was a leader, not a follower.

Being a gang leader meant you were more responsible and mature than the average high schooler, and such he had a hard time getting along with the boys who were interested in sports, sex, and sports.

The school bus chugged onwards, before something smashed into the window, causing Rikuo to flinch. A large mass of a snake-like person was stuck against the window. Rikuo ignored him, as did every other person of the bus, although they couldn't see them.

Ayakashi. youkai. Demons, whatever you want to call them. He ignored them almost 100%, because he wanted nothing to do with them. His hatred of them stemmed deep. He'd seen innocent people killed by youkai, and a youkai had started the fire which killed his parents and the only person in the world he cared about, his older brother Shuu. Shuu was always amazed at how well he naturally handled a sword, and did his best to make sure Rikuo always had something to practice with, and someone to practice against. He'd set up lessons for Rikuo, which he faithfully took until he was placed in foster care. He continued by himself, and found teachers wherever he went to continue.

He spent the last 8 years being shuffled from house to house alone, after being picked up by the government after the house burned. No one blamed him, since he was 6 at the time, although the newspapers that he found said that everyone was surprised he survived at all, which was comforting. His first foster was very nice, although he explicitly banned any sharp weapons, as the last foster-child slit his wrists and tried to die. This was the start of his second life at night.

What did you expect a skilled swordsmen who needed money to do?

He joined the first gang he came upon after defeating a rather well known swordsmen, and went up in the ranks. He hated the way that the gangs treated normal people, and when he was shuffled to another house, he was a little more picky with which gang he chose. At his 2nd school, he took up fencing until he transferred again. At the 3rd school, no one wanted anything to do with him, having heard rumors that were unfortunately true, and such Fencing was out. He was lucky to find a man outside school, who in trade for Rikuo helping his hobbled wife do chores around the house on the weekends, he got lessons for free.

The 3rd foster was a new start. He joined Deathside, and enjoyed the gang life until Rikuo took over. The recruitment was lacking for a few months, but it jumped again after they defeated the largest gang in Hiroshi, merging the travel routes and trade partners. Using a technique which soon became known as Rikuo's 'Fear', leadership skills and the strategy skills from Fujimoto, almost no gang stood in the way.

The snake youkai continued to pound and slop against the window, before grinning at Rikuo.  
"Fooooodddd?"  
He glared at the youkai, mixing in some Fear from anger. The youkai peeled off the window, and was gone. He turned his attention back to the paperwork, and getting through the day without pounding someone into the concrete, which passed through his head often at this school.

* * *

"They expressed interest in meeting with us?" Usually it was the other way around, but he liked clans that weren't spineless. He looked up from the request at Fujimoto.  
"Hai, Rikuo-sama. They will arrange you to go to Ukiyoe Town and meet the current head to set up trade."  
"They have one of the largest routes, and providers." He stated what he knew from memory, knowing she would correct him should he get anything wrong. "It's worth the risk, although not alone. Kunai will be coming with me unofficially. I'll be gone for 3 days and no longer. You and Yasuo will share my duties equally. You can call me at any time if anything important comes up. And if Taue goes off and tries to get himself killed, let him. He's starting to become more expensive than he's worth." He chuckled, knowing that the man owed him his life 4 times now.  
He glanced over the papers in front of him, signing off a few last orders. "Arrange it with the Shirohebi clan. We leave tomorrow."**  
**


	2. Yokai Everywhere

**Pairing will be Rikuo/Tsurara.**

**Let me explain fuller. Ayakashi can only been seen by the strongest spiritual aware, and other ayakashi/youkai. Youkai can be seen by everyone, unless the youkai is disguised as a human (which some humans can see through if the disguise is particularly bad) or 'cloaked', where the youkai is hidden from normal human sight. Again, most spiritually aware people can see through this 'cloak'. It is a AU part of this story, and is a normal youkai power.**

**This chapter edited on Nov 6th 2012.**

* * *

Rikuo stepped off the train, Kunai close behind with a large bag slung over his shoulders. Kunai required nothing on these trips, so the bag was mostly for Tora-Oni and Rikuo's clothes. This was Japan, not an anime, and waving real swords around in public usually ended with you in jail. Avoiding jail was on Rikuo's "Do Not Fuck Up" list. If they caught word of Rikuo's true position (which he knew wouldn't take long), he'd be tried and jailed before he could argue not guilty.

He glanced over at Kunai, thinking about what Kunai would do if that happened. He'd either break into jail and escape, or get himself thrown in with Rikuo. He did not want that to happen, so if that did, he would make Kunai swear to protect Fujimoto, until Rikuo was free. He would at least being doing something, and Fujimoto would need the help.

"Where's the hotel, Rikuo-dono?" Kunai followed faithfully behind, glancing and searching for any threats that may appear. Only one stood out, but Kunai knew the type, and decided the threat level was minimal.

Ignore them, and they ignore you.

"It's a little farther ahead." Rikuo answered sharply, before seeing what Kunai was staring at. A large youkai was moving through the busy day crowds with surprising ease, considering he was about 6 foot around at his widest point. He had two round ears, and was covered in a layer of brown fur, along with torn up robes. No one else saw him, which was normal, but he could see how the humans unconsciously stepped around him, unaware of the youkai's abilities playing with them.

Rikuo stopped walking, and with another few steps the youkai stopped behind him, having been stopped by the only human who hadn't moved out of the way. Kunai could see the look of confusion on his face. The youkai obviously prided itself on moving silently through the crowds. It tilted its head, staring at the rather short human.

Rikuo turned around and faced the bear-youkai, even though he was about 3 feet shorter. He puffed up his chest, and not sensing any real anger towards him, he decided to let the bear have it.

"Oy, Big Guy." He poked the bear in the large fluffy gut, before glaring at him.  
"Yes, I'm talking to you!" The bear growled at him, before moving forwards, deciding the human was no threat. Kunai pulled him out of the way of the youkai, who could have easily squashed the stubborn human, before setting Rikuo next to him.

(Rikuo said nothing about the fact that the nonchalant Kunai didn't use his hands)

"Yo! I'm talking to you! Hey! Don't ignore me!" Frustrated at the lack of respect, he prepared a leg, before kicking the large youkai over. Although the youkai looked heavy, it was largely heavy fur. He still had enough momentum to cause the youkai to fall over and dent the wall it landed against. The youkai groaned, before righting himself and glaring at Rikuo, who had faced down worse glares from his fosters then this bear was managing to do.

Heck, even one of his younger foster sisters was better at it then that.

Kunai was very glad the youkai was not interested in fighting today.

"You're not supposed to be just walking around in the day! Youkai are supposed to be creatures of the night, so stay that way!" Rikuo huffed, looking quite flustered before continuing onwards with Kunai, who only sighed, before catching up with Rikuo.  
"Rikuo-dono. I wish you wouldn't attract attention to yourself." Kunai scolded, before glancing behind him.  
"Shut up Kunai. And besides, no one even noticed. Stupid youkai..." Rikuo caught Kunai's glances and turned, and found the youkai following him still, although at a slower pace than before.

Severe annoyance was evident. "And you! Go wait until dark like a youkai is supposed to!"

The youkai flinched from being yelled at.

A few of the humans next to Kunai and Rikuo quickly reversed direction, and crossed the street, wanting to avoid the duo.  
The youkai gave out a low grumble, his belly vibrating with displeasure, before turning around and slowly walking in the opposite direction.

"Now. I want lunch. Let's stop at that place." Rikuo, switching from one topic to another, pointed towards a large building.  
"Rikuo-dono, that's a laundromat." Kunai sighed  
"Shut up, Kunai! I meant that place!" Rikuo, looking a bit flustered, corrected himself. Rikuo's kanji reading skills weren't up to par, and relied on Kunai most of the time.  
"Rikuo-dono, that's still a laundromat."  
"Argh! What is up with all of them?! Why would two be right next door to each other?!"  
"Rikuo-dono, that's the same laundromat."

* * *

The large bear youkai sat in silence, although he was soaking wet with hot tea. Across from him was the Shodaime of the Nura Clan, Nurarihyon, and his top advisor Karasu Tengu. In Nurarihyon's hand was a cup of now empty tea.

The bear-youkai had returned bruised, and asked to see the commander, where he relayed his story, with a few words as possible.

"A human attacked you?" Nurarihyon asked, still trying to understand what happened. "And you lost?"  
A loud sigh. He kicked me over, and told me to stop following him.  
"You're positive that he was a human?" Karasu Tengu pushed onward for more information.  
Another nod. His protector smelled of youkai, but the boy was human.  
"A human traveling with a youkai, and then so blatantly attacking one of the Nura Clan..."  
Karasu looked towards the Sōdaishō, thinking the same thoughts. If word got out that a Nura member was so easily defeated and by a human... "What are your orders, Sōdaishō?"  
"What does he look like?"  
Black hair, medium length. He was strong enough to kick me over. Companion had blonde hair, and had a large backpack. Called the human Rikuo-dono.  
"A human named Rikuo attacking a youkai..." Nurarihyon pondered, a bit of hope in his mind.  
"I want to meet this human. Any Human who so blatantly attacks youkai could ruin the Nura Clan's image. Send out a few members to search for him, and spread his description around. I want him here in one piece." Nurarihyon ordered, before drinking the last sip from the bottom of his cold tea.

* * *

Twitch.  
Twitch.  
Twitch.  
Shudder.  
Twitch.  
Twitch.  
Tap. Tap Tap.  
He sighed, before leaning back in his chair. He was waiting to meet the head of the Shirohebi clan, and had now been sitting here for the past hour in the waiting room. He busied himself by first finishing the paperwork that Fujimoto said he was to finish while away.  
Then double checking the paperwork.  
Then reading the interesting magazines.  
Then the boring magazines.  
Then the interesting ones again.  
He made a few calls, and completed some homework as well.  
He then resorted to sorting the magazines by title and month.  
He sighed again, wishing that he hadn't left Kunai outside. At least having someone to talk to would be better than sitting here alone. He could always pretend they had met today, and Kunai was not his bodyguard. But, he prefered to follow instructions. It made for an easy time when dealing with rule-sticklers.  
He had ordered Kunai to stay outside unless called, and he bet the bodyguard had wore a path in the concrete outside. He knew Kunai could feel him, which was probably the only reason he hadn't come charging in here, ready to rescue him.

The sliding doors next to him opened, and a youkai walked in. The secretary didn't look up, and the youkai went up the elevator, before the doors opened and a human came out. The youkai then rode the elevator up, to who knows where. Even though he asked twice, the secretary refused to say what was taking the leader so long. Was he in a meeting? Did he feel the Demons weren't worth his time?  
"Tch. youkai, just going up like he pleases when I have to wait here like an old fool."  
He was here, wasting his time for someone that was supposed to show up. If they weren't here soon, he was leaving and calling this clan a bust.

He felt Kunai clench up, obviously another youkai outside.

The doors opened again, and this time the secretary looked up. A older man came in, dressed for success with a briefcase in hand. Rikuo shuddered out of surprise, and focused on the man, knowing exactly what that feeling meant.

"Greetings Shirohebi-san. I have your appointments here." She slid a few pieces of paper to him, which he read over quickly.  
"Who do I have first?"  
"Rikuo Nishimura." She replied, knowing the kid's name by heart after spending the past hour with him.  
"Ahh yes the Nishimura prodigy. When's he scheduled to arrive?"  
"An hour ago." Rikuo took this chance to stand up, glaring and as tall as he could stand, adjusting the suit collar as he stood up. Fujimoto made him take this specially made suit, and although he wasn't wearing a tie and the top buttons were undone, he still felt out of place in it. With every step the hidden knife brushed against his chest, always a reminder of the dangers of being a gang leader. He felt hot, and was unsure why he was so nervous. He did his best to calm himself, knowing if he got too riled up, Kunai would appear.

"Sorry, sorry. I got held up. I'm Goro Shirohebi. Shall we continue this inside my office?" The man didn't wait for a response, and Rikuo followed him into the elevator. He pressed the button for the top, 5th floor.  
Rikuo smirked a little bit, already decided how he would handle this. The elevator dinged, and started a very slow ascent, motors rolling.  
"Shirohebi, a youkai clan." The man froze in surprise.  
Ren looked over Rikuo, nervously. "You're human." He stated nervously, feeling no trace of youkai or Fear coming from the teen.  
Rikuo leaned back against the wall, placing his hands behind his head nonchalantly with his eyes closed. "Business is business, if it's with humans or youkai. If you're the type of youkai who has a sense of honor and proven your worthiness, we may be able to make a deal."  
The youkai swallowed nervously, as the elevator pinged.

* * *

"Moshi moshi."  
"It's done, Fujimoto. The first shipment leaves tomorrow." Strict business tone. While Goro was a youkai, Rikuo found the man rather personable. The youkai was also a father, and Rikuo decided the risk of working with this youkai clan was less than the pros, and worth it in the end.  
"Hai, Rikuo-sama."  
He made it clear that he despised all youkai, but they were to reach a satisfying agreement for both of them. New trade routes, and the Shirohebi clan would have contacts in the Hiroshi area and be assisted in opening trade.  
"Contact me when it arrives." He slapped the phone close, before catching the noise of something knocking. On the 5th story?  
A quick glance revealed it to be a crow-youkai, with a staff He vaguely remembered that youkai from somewhere...But he couldn't place it. He'd seen so many youkai in his life, he didn't doubt that the youkai had been seen before somewhere else.

A nagging feeling told him that youkai was more important than he thought.

The window opened, and the crow flew in, ignoring the human.  
"This is another reason why I hate youkai. You cannot go anywhere without running into one." He sighed, before glaring at the two youkai.  
"Jeeze. I'll be in contact soon, Shirohebi-san." Using the proper honorifics, as the youkai had proven himself Demon worthy. With a small salute he turned and entered the elevator and was gone, leaving the two youkai alone.  
"He...He was able to see me?" Karasu Tengu stuttered out of surprise.  
"He also saw through my disguise." Goro sighed, before collapsing onto the desk. Seeing the curious look, he relayed what he knew.  
"Rikuo Nishimura. He's the leader of a gang called the Deathside Demons, and I have no idea how, but he figured out I was a youkai before we even got off the elevator. And..."  
Ren pulled out a jug of sake, before taking a large swig and collapsing back on the desk.  
"And what?"  
"He really hates youkai. I think he did it on purpose to fluster me and get a better deal."  
A human who saw through Shirohebi's disguise, and was able to see me. Could it be the human from earlier? Black hair and all...But if he hates youkai, and he has a youkai companion, then he would obviously not willingly come to the Nura Clan. He would refuse, or flee.

No...this human will need a different tactic.

* * *

He was flailing, something was wrapped around him, restraining his movements. Fear struck him, before he opened his eyes, realizing it was a dream, and he was safe in the hotel room. He quickly sat up, his heart racing, sweating and panting. He placed his hand to his forehead, feeling hot.  
I need a drink.  
He rose from the bed, being careful not to disturb Kunai, who was crashed out on the couch. He turned down the air conditioning more, the machine complying by rumbling on.  
Damn nightmares. Why are they coming back now?  
He poured himself a glass of water, before heading back to bed.  
I almost feel sorry for that guy, whoever he was. Getting stabbed was a harsh way to go.  
He paused, trying to remember just where he saw that man before. Was he someone close who died, and that's why the man was stabbed?  
"I probably thought him up. Maybe I'm afraid to die? Uh, Minimoto was always better at this than me." He shrugged, walking back towards the bed.  
Something white flashed beside him. He quickly turned his head, and found him face to face with the mirror.  
The mirror stared back, although it wasn't him. Insanely long white and black hair, which he doubted a tube of hair gel could match in style, and red eyes and a cocky smirk stared back. The face was eerily familiar. The reflection winked.

He blinked in confusion, only to find the reflection was gone, with only his shocked face staring back.

Now I'm hallucinating.  
His phone vibrated, calling his attention from the bedside.  
"Moshi moshi."  
"Rikuo-sama, did I wake you?"  
"Iie. I was awake."  
"Are those dreams back?"  
"Fujimoto. Why are you calling?" He cut off the question, changing tone to let her know that was out of line.  
"Excuse me, Rikuo-sama. Another clan has requested to meet with you."  
"Who?"  
"The Gyuuki clan."  
"Any restrictions?"  
"None. They wish to set up trade, seeing that you are in town."  
"And how do you feel about this?" He was testing her opinion. If something were to happen, he would want Fujimoto to take over, so he was always getting her opinion, seeing what she thought, how she acted, etc. You always had a back-up plan, but Rikuo never planned on being caught.  
"I believe it would be a good idea. I've researched the clan, and they are resources in the Mount Nejireme area."  
"Where and when?" He asked, seeing the benefits already. He scrimmaged for a piece of paper, before writing the time and place down.  
"Arigatou, Fujimoto. I'll update you tomorrow."  
"Hai, Rikuo-sama. Please sleep well."  
He hung up, before sighing and collapsing onto the bed.

* * *

**"Rikuo-dono. We must leave immediately."  
"Another youkai clan?" He peaked around the corner of the wall, having taken the back way to the meeting place for extra security. You always had one more level of security. Kunai had been suspicious upon hearing the name, and Rikuo agreed to be careful with this meeting in response.**

"Worse. This is the main location for the Nura Clan. Gyuuki is the name of one of the clan's oldest members. They wanted to fool us." Rikuo reached for his knife, understanding what that meant.

He had known about the Nura Clan since Kunai joined him. But why was he being asked here? Was the Shirohebi clan part of the Nura Clan, and this was to take revenge for him discovering the secret? Or was it more innocent, and they actually wanted to talk business? They couldn't take the chance. It was just him and Shirohebi. It felt like the whole Nura Clan sat on the other side of the wall, against him and Kunai.

"Damn, that's no good."  
"Agreed." Kunai stepped to leave back the way they came, knives at the ready. He waited for Rikuo's agreement, which didn't come.

He turned around, to face a large youkai, with skulls around his neck. The youkai towered over 7 feet tall, and had a firm grip on the squirming Rikuo, a hand placed over his face to prevent Rikuo from alerting the comrade.

Kunai jumped into action, as something wrapped around him and the backpack dropped to the ground with a thud, the wrapping squeezing his arms and legs tight against his body. He kept a firm grip on his knives, but he couldn't move to use them.

"If you struggle, it'll only become tighter." A neckless youkai, the red strings which held Kunai captive, knotted around his fingers. It was obvious this was no ordinary string, and was probably reinforced with Fear.

"Good job Kubinashi!"  
"Sōdaishō had a feeling you would try and flee, so it looks like it was a good idea he sent us." The neck less explained for the sake of the two captured. With the disgruntled Rikuo slung over his shoulder, the youkai lead the small parade into the compound, followed by the tied up Kunai and his prisoners. The doors closed behind them, and youkai flooded the garden around the prisoners, having full range of the garden now. Rikuo let out a stream of curses, seeing that this was no way for a business meeting to start.

Youkai after youkai stared as the odd parade made their way through the compound. Human youkai, small youkai, food youkai. Different sizes, shapes, and colors all curiously watched them. With a quick move by Kubinashi, Rikuo was also tied up, and the two prisoners and guards stood outside the old time style house. Rikuo could feel the youkai presence on the string, and doubted that it could be cut at all.

"Well, Kunai, we did exactly what I didn't want to do. We walked into the lion's den, and we're chopped liver."

The door in front of them opened, and members of the Nura council filed out, interested to see the strange human and his protector. The human was dangerous. Fearing youkai was one thing, but hating them and actually attacking them?! That was unheard of.

The obvious leader took his place in the center of the council, a pipe in his hand and a large bald head. On his sides were youkai ranging from cyclops, to purple feather dressed youkai, to rather depressing looking youkai.  
"I am Nurarihyon, Shodaime of the Nura Clan. I requested your presence the human way, but instead you resorted to running." Distaste was evident in his voice, glaring at the two prisoners.

"Another reason why I hate youkai. They never take no for an answer."  
"Please be quiet, Rikuo-dono."  
"Shut up Kunai."  
"The backpack." Nurarihyon ordered, and the one known as Kubinashi threw it to him. Nurarihyon shook the bag out, with Rikuo's normal clothes and a sheathed sword falling to the ground.  
"Don't touch it, youkai." Rikuo growled.  
Grumbles went through the crowd, upset at the lack of respect for the leader. Nurarihyon unsheathed the sword, and passed the sword back and forth in his hands, looking over it's craftsmanship.  
"It's a fine blade." Nurarihyon sheathed the blade, and handed to a youkai next to him.  
"Your names."  
Rikuo remained silent, glaring.  
"You can answer, or your friend can answer for you." A monk-dressed youkai placed a sword dangerously close to Kunai's neck, who remained passive at the danger.  
Rikuo spoke, knowing that Kunai would not answer. "Rikuo Nishimura and Kunai Morioka." The youkai in the gardens whispered among themselves, although nothing changed between the council members.  
"Why did you come to Ukiyoe Town?"  
Considering the youkai found him through his gang, he knew they wouldn't take lies.  
"I'm the leader of a gang called Deathside Demons. I came here to set up trade with the Shirohebi clan. I figured out the leader was a youkai. He freaked out."  
Rikuo glared at the raven youkai flying next to the commander, as it was now known that he was part of the Nura clan.  
"How were you able to determine he was a youkai?" Nurarihyon questioned.  
"I've been able to see youkai since I was little, so I've learned the difference."  
"Is that why you hate youkai?" Rikuo remained silent.  
"Oy! The Supreme Commander's talking to you! Answer him!" Ao may have shook Rikuo a little harder then he should have, considering how long it took Rikuo to be able to stand up straight again before he was able to answer, anger heavy in his voice.  
"Why do I hate youkai? Youkai lie, steal, cheat, and kill for fun. They have no rules, boundaries, trust, or sense of honor. They turn on you in a second, and no one is left standing when they are through. Humans fear youkai because humans fear the powerful and unknown. Do you know why I hate youkai? Because I've known them my entire life! And they're nothing! All they do is use their fear to frighten others, and they feed off it. All we do is make them stronger!"

Nurarihyon thought for a moment, before answering.

"It's true some youkai are like that, and you obviously have a history with them. The Nura Clan is different, and I'm going to prove it to you. If you can defeat me in a one on one fair fight, you can go back to your gang in peace, and never see another Nura youkai again."


	3. Becoming What's Expected Of You

******2 Years Ago.  
**Rikuo was speeding towards the Demons location at on his bike, a basic bike that he was proud to call his first gift from someone other than his now dead brother. Since he was the only member without a method of transportation (read, no driver's license), he was forced to use the bus, which didn't always have a drop-off place near the headquarters. This usually meant he was late, and Haraguchi decided enough was enough. Rikuo was lucky enough to know how to ride, courtesy of one of the later fosters obsession with exercise. Rikuo didn't complain, as he built up quite a bit of endurance which served him well, and he continued to use the same regiment to keep it up. His endurance had saved him before, in fights and escaping from school age kids.

He still had to leave quite early to get to most of the locations, but he was at least getting there on time with proper planning. No more late buses!

He was pedaling as fast as he could today, taking every shortcut he knew, even the rather risky ones, which were even more risky in the darkness. He was relying on the full moon's glow, which seemed to increase his strength. Tora-oni was strapped on his back, as he was always encountering youkai looking for a snack. He received a distressing text from Fujimoto-san a few minutes ago, so he snuck out as soon as he could.

He almost never received texts from the Demons, mostly because he was so low in the command hierarchy. Other than being friends with Haraguchi, he wasn't a very remarkable member. He wasn't very social, not that anyone wanted to hang out with a teenager. Some of the people buttered up to him, hoping to get good points with Haraguchi-sama. Since youkai were always following him around, he was known as the 'crazy kid.' Considering he talked to 'thin air' and joined the gang so early, the name was correct. Rikuo didn't mind. He always was alone, so he had no intention of starting now.

The gang had been so quiet recently, that he didn't bother to check in, as almost no battles had taken place. With Haraguchi in command, none of the other gangs dared step out of line, so things were nice and peaceful. He had to spend some time at home to avoid suspicion, and riding all the way up there for nothing was a waste of time.

He wondered if something happened to Haraguchi-sama, who was probably the closest thing to a father Rikuo ever had. Rikuo's real father hated him, while his mom loved him. This created a jealously in the family, one that was never resolved.

Haraguchi was well adapt at almost everything, and whatever he wasn't strong at was spent learning with Rikuo, as there was always a member ready to teach something new.  
(Bonsai was probably the shortest lived activity between them)  
The Demons were quite a varied bunch, and everyone had a special hobby or talent that they were willing to share. Those interested in stocks were in charge of investing, under the watchful eye of the Lead Investor, of course. It was a place where hobbies and talents were shared and grown. There was always someone willing to battle for practice and training, so even if there were no fights, there was always something to do.

Rikuo and Haraguchi regularly spared, the number of wins between them was around 40-60, 60 being Haraguchi. Considering it was his skills that attracted Haraguchi in the first place, he did his best to stay on top of his game. Swordwork always came naturally to him, and with the training he got from Shuu's sensai, he became on of the top students. His height was an advantage, against the taller students who weren't used to fighting his height. He was always called in to fight those who wanted to move up against their time. He was efficient at defeating them quickly and easily, making the cocky students practice harder.

Until he was relocated, anyway.

The building came into sight, and Rikuo relaxed, seeing the building was not destroyed, knocking 4 things off his 'Shit That Happened' list.

He jumped off the bike, and wheeled inside, surprised to find the building mostly quiet, even though many members were milling around. Usually there was laughing, or working. Not just...odd silence. Everyone looked so downtrodden, no one even noticed he was there. It was unsettling, and Rikuo hurried towards the only people who knew what happened.  
He left his bike in the empty office of Haraguchi, and followed the sound of yelling. He found Fujimoto-san, Yasuo-san, and Taue. Taue was yelling, and Fujimoto was actually crying. Now, being 2nd in command meant that you had to be tougher than most men, so something was really really wrong.

"Taue!" Rikuo sternly said, letting the lower in rank know he had arrived. Most likely, Taue was the source of Fujimoto's tears. Taue turned, before glaring at Rikuo.  
"You! You did this! It must have been your weirdness that caused this!" With pure anger on his face, Taue must have been waiting for Rikuo to arrive. He lunged at the teen, a large knife in hand, threatening to kill.

Now, Taue knew this very well. Your location in the command hierarchy was based on a few things. Your skill at protecting yourself, the length of time you had been with the gang, and how well you could handle situations that required leadership. The higher up in the rank, the more situations to deal with.

Rikuo had proven himself the day he arrived, and much to chagrin of Taue, above him in rank.  
Taue was directly under Rikuo, and constantly pushed his boundaries and limits. He was always challenging Rikuo, and losing.

To a seasoned warrior, finding Taue's weakness was easy. His eyes narrowed, and in a second he decided what to do to meet the man's attack. Waiting for the charge to come close enough, Rikuo drew Tora-oni in one slick move, before slicing upwards towards the knife and sheathing the sword again. His attack knocked the knife from the man's hand, causing pain and a distraction. He flipped the sheath around in his hand, and placed the back end of his sheath against Taue's chest, glaring quite fiercely.

Rikuo had dealt with the same kind of attack numerous times, even going so far as to practice this move. This was a common attack by unskilled members of other gangs. Charge with a knife, and hope for the best.

Usually, that would be the tip of Tora-oni placed against the attacker's chest, not a dull sheath. This was the first time he wasn't trying to injure the attacker.

Fujimoto and Yasuo had hardly ever seen Rikuo in action, as he was known to fight his own battles. He paired up with Haraguchi if anyone, or fought by himself. He rarely stayed with the crowd, and prefered to do his own thing. He rarely practiced with anyone other than Haraguchi-sama, and those he did fight with refused to say what the outcome was. Being beaten by a teenager was a harsh blow to anyone's ego.

"Stop this Taue. Haraguchi made it clear. We are to obey his orders." Yasuo sternly said, insinuating it was an order from the higher in command. Taue growled, before stepping back from the fight, signaling he respected Rikuo as the higher in command. Taue retrieved the broken knife, before leaving the three alone, slinking away like a beaten dog.

Rikuo felt bad about easily disabling the lower-ranked. Rikuo usually took it easy on him, let the man get a little practice in, as the man was just out of his league with Rikuo. But tonight, he had no time for games, and he let it show. He had caught the surprised looks on the 2nd and 3rd's faces, even though they tried to hide it.

"What happened?" The moment of truth was here. He would finally know why they called him here.  
The look of pain was evident on both of their faces.  
"Two nights ago, someone tipped off the police, and Haraguchi-sama was set-up. He was arrested and charged with murder. He was sentenced to prison for 16 years." Yasuo sighed, finally relaying the bad-news.  
Rikuo remained silent, his face taut with anger. A snitch? This was his family, and he felt betrayed. There was someone against the gang. They would have to find the snitch, or risk even worse consequences.

Haraguchi-sama had never picked an heir to the gang, and the entire gang could resort to a full out war to resolve that. The gang wouldn't accept Fujimoto as leader, even though it was her rightful position. Even though the Demons were much more gender balanced than other gangs, the Demons only allowed Fujimoto to become the 2nd as they trusted Haraguchi-sama. They would never listen to her.

Rikuo would back her up. She deserved it.

"Has anyone spoken to him since then?" If Haraguchi got word out, ordered that Fujimoto was the rightful heir, then the gang would listen. They would accept her. The gang wouldn't be destroyed by it's self.

"I did. I went to his trial, and I was going to be his lawyer. He slipped me this note, before saying he was guilty. It was over before I could stop him." Yasuo replied, and Rikuo now noticed the folded note in his hand.

Haraguchi was the perfect leader. Tall and handsome, and an expert with a katana, he was cool and collected, and had a charisma that attracted everyone. He treated everyone like humans, not trash, or toys, or money, which put the Demons in a different league than the typical gang. This was the reason why so many people flocked to the Demons for trade, protection, or help. Haraguchi held the gang together, and kept the gang going strong.

Yasuo handed the folded note to Rikuo, who took it while doing his best to keep his hands from shaking. On the front of the napkin was the kanji for his name. Or, what looked like it. Rikuo wasn't strong with kanji, and Haraguchi's writing wasn't the best either, especially as this was most likely scrawled in a hurry.

Out of everyone Haraguchi could have sent a note to, he sent it to Rikuo? Why not Fujimoto? Was it a note to him? Something like 'stay strong, and Fujimoto's in charge? Back her up.' There wasn't much to be said to him, except a note of good will.

He unfolded the paper, and read over it. And then re-read it.

It couldn't be. There was no way...

_I pass the command of Deathside Demons to Rikuo Nishimura._  
_May it prosper in my absence._  
_Kai Haraguchi_

This had to be a joke. Him, leading the Demons? There was no way he could command them. Fujimoto had been with the gang longer, and was more experienced. If the gang wouldn't accept Fujimoto, there was no way they'd accept a teenager!

"This is real?" His voice squeaked at the end with surprise, looking up at the current 2nd and 3rd. He could see that they were upset that Fujimoto was not chosen. Fujimoto and Yasuo trusted Haraguchi, and that was why they delivered the note. If they had not trusted him, Rikuo would have never gotten the note. They were placing their faith in Haraguchi, and in turn Rikuo.

So what if he was natural at being a leader, like his guidance counselors said? Being a natural did not mean it was easy. Every minute was focused on the gang. It was a huge responsibility. His mistake could kill people, or spell the end for the gang. The gang would accept Fujimoto better than they would him!

He trusted Haraguchi-sama. If he said Rikuo could lead the gang, then he trusted Rikuo to do it. It was Haraguchi's responsibility to choose the next head. He loved the gang, and he would choose the best choice. It was cowardly not to accept the position. Haraguchi had placed all his faith in Rikuo, and it was his job to accept him.

Fujimoto and Yasuo watched the look of confusion and betrayal flash across Rikuo's face. They had heavily discussed it before Rikuo arrived. Both Fujimoto and Yasuo felt Fujimoto was the right choice. They both felt betrayed. How could this 13 year old run a gang? The Demons were not child's play. Haraguchi had spent his life creating this gang, and now he was going to throw it away, by giving it to a kid.

Rikuo was one of the oddest members of the gang. Not many thought of joining a full fledged gang at 13, nor were they as skilled. Fujimoto remembered when Rikuo joined, as she was with Haraguchi when they found him. Haraguchi immediately spotted the potential, although that might have been because of all the opposing gang members he defeated by himself. Rikuo shared the same ideals as Haraguchi, and they immediately hit it off. Haraguchi became somewhat of a mentor towards the displaced boy. Fujimoto had done research on his history when Rikuo joined, as a safety precaution.

He had no birth certificate, and took on a new name when his family died. He was still in foster care, so a lot of things remained hidden. By going through her gang information routes, she discovered Rikuo had been with two other gangs before that, and left when he changed fosters. How had Rikuo become so skilled, and why did he desire to join a gang in the first place?

Haraguchi seemed to know the full story, but he refused to say anything, as it would betray his trust with Rikuo. Rikuo was just as close lipped as Haraguchi was.

Fujimoto had a feeling the reason Rikuo remained low in the ranks was because Haraguchi didn't want Rikuo to rise. Rikuo had no interest in rising either, so he felt no different staying where he was.

Rikuo remained a mystery. He was awkward around people. Being 13, he didn't have the skill or anywhere near the charisma that Haraguchi had, and he lacked experience. Running a gang was no easy job, and many had failed under the stress.

Both of them knew that allowing Rikuo to become the leader would only end in the Demons' downfall.

That's why they decided. If Rikuo did accept the position, and the Demons were failing, they would take over, and Rikuo's rule would end. If he acted like a child, and played with the position, then he would not be allowed to continue. Fujimoto could overthrow Rikuo, and the Demons would respect that, as it was the way of the gang.

Neither had high hopes for the kid. He talked to thin air, and was known for vanishing for periods of time. Not the consistent leadership the Demons needed.

Both of them knew, Demons would leave when Rikuo took the position. Enrollment would drop. No one wanted to obey a kid's commands.

Yasuo argued they shouldn't have even told him. Just ignore the previous' leaders wishes, but Fujimoto denied him. They would honor Haraguchi's wishes, for now.

"It is. Haraguchi-sama wants you to take over." Fujimoto stood up, and dried her face off, before turning to Rikuo. "You could always deny it. Then the position would fall to me." She hinted, hoping he would take it.

Rikuo swallowed, weighing his options, his eyes hidden from the two. Rikuo could not disobey Haraguchi's wish. That would be disrespectful.  
_"You have nothing to fear, except fear itself. Take the position." _A voice...he never heard before but somehow sounded familiar at the same time. He agreed with it. He could do it. With Fujimoto and Yasuo's help, he could become the leader the Demons needed.

If he did this, he would have to dedicate his life to the gang. Every moment would be spent to better the gang. Every decision he made could kill someone. He would have to be the best leader he could.  
He could change the way the gang worked, improve on the idea that Haraguchi started with, and grow it. He could do what the previous head could not. He had his whole life to do it.

The answer was very clear to him.

He cleared his throat, his decision made. No turning back now.  
He put on a tone that felt very natural to him, his blood boiling with excitement.

Fujimoto and Yasuo felt a change in the atmosphere, and both focused on Rikuo. He straightened up, shoulders back, head held proudly. The calm and awkward Rikuo was gone, replaced with someone very unfamiliar to them. A look that commanded respect. A look that expected you to perform 100%, and expected no less. One that could lead the Demons. The atmosphere was almost threatening.

He wouldn't be unfamiliar for long.

"Yasuo. Gather the Demons."

* * *

"As everyone knows, Haraguchi-sama was arrested a few days ago, without leaving an heir to the Deathside Demons. Thankfully, while I was at his trial, he told me who would take the place of the 2nd Head." Yasuo said as he stood at the front of a not-very-big crowd, with Fujimoto and Rikuo next to him, butterflies in his stomach. He had never done public speaking or inspirational speeches before, so it was more than obvious he was quite nervous.

The Demons remained quiet, eager to see who had been chosen to lead the Demons into the new generation. Yasuo nodded, and Rikuo took his place in the center. The crowd then broke into whispers.

Taking a deep breath, Rikuo began, "I think not all of you know me. I'm Rikuo Nishimura. I've only been with the gang for the past year, since Haraguchi-san asked me to join. 5 years ago, Haraguchi-san started this gang with one purpose: to change the stereotype of gangs. That idea has since exploded into the Deathside Demons. We've done good. We are looking at starting a new location at Ukiyoe. The number of Demons grow every day. We've prevented any new gangs from starting up with opposing ideals. We have backers from all over Japan, and new trade routes every day. People don't fear us anymore. People can leave their houses at night, without fear of being murdered."

This got some cheers from the crowd, easing a little bit of the uncomfortable feeling in his gut.

"But we can do better. I want the Demons to become the largest gang in Japan. I want us to be the gang for everything. I want us to become so large and legal, I want us to be able to work with the police."

Worried whispers. Ok, that might have been a little too far in the future.

"I want other gangs to quake with fear when our name is mentioned. Although Haraguchi-san may not be around, his ideals are still with us. Nothing is stopping us from achieving his goals. I'm going to do what he couldn't do."

He paused, hoping that he made his point successfully. The entire room was silent, waiting for the next statement that would decide the fate.

"I gratefully accept the command of the Deathside Demons." Thankfully, the entire crowd burst into cheers, and sake appeared, and was quickly spread through the crowd. Rikuo took a small bit, in honor and respect.

Celebration was at hand.

* * *

******Present Time  
**

* * *

_"Why do I hate youkai? Youkai lie, steal, cheat, and kill for fun. They have no rules, boundaries, trust, or sense of honor. They turn on you in a second, and no one is left standing when they are through. Humans fear youkai because humans fear the powerful and unknown. Do you know why I hate youkai? Because I've known them my entire life! And they're nothing! All they do is use their fear to frighten others, and they feed off it. All we do is make them stronger!"_

_"It's true some youkai are like that, and you obviously have a history with them. The Nura Clan is different, and I'm going to prove it to you. If you can defeat me in a one on one fair fight, you can go back to your gang in peace, and never see another Nura youkai again."_

Well spoken words from the leader, the council members still found the idea insane. The Shodaime, fighting a mere human? What was he thinking? Just kill him and get over the problem!

Nurarihyon waved them off. "Oy oy. Can't an old man have a little fun around here?" Against the council's wishes, the commander was going to fight. Seeing the determined look in the commander's eyes, the council silenced.

"Rikuo-dono! He is the leader of the Nura Clan, you can't possibly be..." Kunai objected more then the council. A human stood no chance against the Nura Clan's leader, even one was skilled with youkai tricks as Rikuo was.  
"What happens if you win?" Rikuo questioned, weighing the pros and cons.  
"Then you stay here as our honored guest for a week. Maybe we can change your opinion of youkai."  
Rikuo knew there was another reason in the youkai's true words.  
"As if. I accept your terms." He withdrew Tora-oni, and threw the sheath to the blubbering Kunai.  
Nurarihyon withdrew a sword from a normal wood sheath.  
"The first one to draw blood shall win." Nurarihyon steadied himself.  
"None of your Yokai tricks. This will be a fair fight for both of us." Rikuo readied himself, sword out in front defensively.

Nurarihyon started the battle, and jumped to attack the human. Rikuo dodged, before attempting his defensive attack. He was too short in his reach, and Nurarihyon was able to jump back and miss the attack. Spinning around, Rikuo used his momentum to jump forward, and Nurarihyon leaned to the left and dodged.

It was obvious to the onlookers that the Shodaisho was taking it easy on the human, but the human was well versed in the skill as well. Even the council found themselves surprised at the skill which the human handled himself. Not many humans could say they fought the Lord of Pandemonium.

Rikuo jumped backwards, trying to gain some distance. Rikuo was taller than Nurarihyon and he was not used to fighting against a shorter person. He always used his height to the advantage, but now the tables were turned, and he was the taller one.

The swords clashed with sparks, before Rikuo pushed Nurarihyon back. Both were focusing on the fight, and true to Rikuo's word, the youkai did not use any 'youkai tricks'. At least he was honorable in his word.

Rikuo kicked Nurarihyon backwards, before dashing forward. Nurarihyon slipped to the side, before adding to the momentum by kicking Rikuo. The added momentum meant Rikuo couldn't slow down, and slipped forward, his arms flailing trying to slow him down. He finally regained his balance, only for the youkai to be a split second away.  
Rikuo jumped at the last second, but was too late to avoid the sword. He raised his arm to protect his face, feeling the sharp blade slice his skin. He stumbled back in surprise, before falling to the ground. He had injuries before, but this one felt different. it burned more. Was there some poison on the blade? Why not just kill him instead of the show? Kunai jumped to his side, in case the youkai went back on his word.

"Sōdaishō wins!"

"Call Zen-sama. He can stop the bleeding." Nurarihyon ordered, becoming much more quiet than before. The youkai in the crowd were equally silent. What happened to the unshakeable leader? This Nurarihyon looked unsure of what to do. What could have brought that on? They should have been celebrating. The leader won!

Zen-sama was summoned, a first aid kit of sorts with him.  
Nurarihyon turned towards the companion, who was very thankful that Nurarihyon did not seriously harm his master.  
"Morioka. You're youkai." Nurarihyon stated, knowing it the moment that they entered together.  
"Hai sir." Kunai answered, not wanting to offend the leader.  
"I thought Rikuo hated Yokai."  
"I do/He does." They both answered, before glaring at each other.  
"He saved my life. In return, I swore myself as his bodyguard." Kunai filled in, as he watched Zen bandage the teen.  
"And he's done a damn good job of it, thank you." Rikuo spat.  
"Until you decided to fight the leader of the Nura Clan! How am I supposed to feel knowing that I let you do that? He could have killed you! Why can't you be a little more calm, and not so stubborn?!"  
"That was my decision, and yours to follow. And my stubbornness has won many battles before."  
Rikuo pulled his arm away from Zen as soon as the youkai was finished.  
"Sōdaishō, what happened? It looks like he was sliced with a sword. But did you really use Nenekirimaru? Isn't he a human?" Zen asked, honestly trying to figure out what happened. You don't respond to a call to the front for a few minutes, and when you arrive the Shodaisho is fighting a human. Boy, that's what made the Nura Gumi interesting!

"Of course I'm human!" Rikuo snapped at the doctor. "What does a sword have anything to do with that?"  
"Nenekirimaru is a special sword. One that only hurts youkai." Zen explained. "It means, since the sword cut you, that means you have youkai blood. Someone in your past was a youkai."  
Rikuo laughed, knowing the chances of that being true were slim. Youkai were tricksters, and would do anything to make you believe what they needed you to.  
"We'll talk tomorrow. Take these two to some ready guest rooms, and have Rikuo get washed up. He's a mess." Nurarihyon spoke clearly, his nerve back.

When the two were gone, Nurarihyon took another puff on his pipe, having reclaimed it from one of the closest youkai.  
"It's perfectly possible that he is the son of another youkai." Nurarihyon admitted, knowing it was perfectly logical. It was assumed Rikuo was dead. Why kill the Nidaime then let the child live? While humans and youkai generally don't mix, there were always some outliers, so he could have one of the Nura members in his history. It could be a grandfather, or even farther back in his history. His youkai blood might only be enough to be affected by Nenekirimaru.

"Sōdaishō. Do you really believe that?" Gyuuki asked, having seen the way that Rikuo moved, much like the Nidaime did. The glare when his companion was threatened was very similar as well, sending aches down Nurarihyon's heart. He was called the Lord of Pandemonium, but he failed at protecting his descendants. The chance that his grandson, the Grandson of Nurarihyon, was alive was enough for Nurarihyon. If Rikuo was his grandson, he obviously didn't remember.

Something else reminded him why he was so hopeful. Rikuo was the only person to see Rihan's killer. The only person who knew what happened on that night. If Rikuo was his grandson, and could remember...

Nurarihyon sighed. "He bears a remarkable resemblance to Rihan, with his hair like that."  
"Agreed."  
"It's too early to tell. He has no idea about his true identity. If he stays here a week and nothing happens, he may leave and go on with his life, knowing that someone along his lineage was a youkai."  
"And if he's not? If he is the missing Sandaime?" Gyuuki asked, already knowing the answer.  
"Then we celebrate." Nurarihyon grinned, before taking another puff of his pipe.


	4. Yokai Are People Too

**Thanks uchiha-sakura193 for pointing out a research mistake. Longer chapter this time, to make up for the mistake.**

**Shit, just realized Nenekirimaru can't cut humans, even Rikuo in his human form. So, I guess it's a AU plot hole.**

* * *

"Rikuo-dono. Are you awake?" Something poked him lightly in the gut. Something scaly. He shifted in his bed, before turning towards the voice.

"Kunai?" Rikuo blinked his eyes open, recognizing the voice in his sleep haze, before jerking back in surprise. "Jeeze. Can't you warn me before you do that?"

Rikuo shook out his arms, before folding back the blanket of his bed. Kunai's perfectly made bed sat next to him, the youkai obviously been up rather early.

"Sorry, Rikuo-dono. I brought breakfast from the kitchen." Kunai's reptilian prehensile tail held a set of wrinkled robes, the youkai's hands full with a tray. He had reverted back to his standard clothing, with pockets for his knives and various other supplies. Good for being a bodyguard, not for daily life, where he preferred loose clothing. The clothes, to compliment his green scales, ranged from dark red to orange. Kunai set the robes down, before flattening out the wrinkles.

The room was large, especially for two occupants. The youkai were just showing off their wealth. It was near the front of the building, and although it was quiet, there were always eyes watching. Small youkai were creeping through the cracks all the time, keeping him up at night. He finally got sick of it, and threw some of Kunai's knives at the few who trespassed. He threw wide, and scattered them, so they learned quickly.

He knew Kunai was doing his best to keep the normalcy, and act like nothing was wrong.  
But something was wrong. The normalcy they had was falling apart around them. They were being held almost hostage by the enemy. The gang was facing huge problems. Police were slowly gaining information about the members. Someone was snitching, and it was only a matter of time before something big went wrong. Something Rikuo couldn't fix.

And Rikuo was here. Too far away if something went wrong.  
It was an uneasy feeling. Knowing you were trapped. Unable to be there. Unable to fight with your gang if something happened. He trusted Fujimoto and Yasuo, but they could only do so much with the leader away. He was the glue, and it would only hold together for so long without him.

Rikuo accepted the plate of breakfast, and grinned when he found the breakfast matching what he ate everyday, as well as a newspaper, and a stack of paperwork, courtesy of Fujimoto. He thanked Kuani, who sat down next to Rikuo's bed.

"Anything to report?" Kunai was a iguana youkai, with green scales and tail. The tail was used to throw knives, and to keep Rikuo out of trouble, much to the master's chagrin. Initially, Rikuo was a little put off the sight of youkai Kunai, but now he was more odd looking in human form, as Rikuo purposely saw through Kunai's disguise almost all of the time.

"Nothing yet. The NPD is moving in slowly, but they are getting closer. How's your arm doing?" Rikuo stopped eating and glanced over. The bandaging was still holding tight, and it looked like the bleeding stopped. That Zen at least knew his stuff.  
He sighed. "Is that true? Is that sword only dangerous to youkai?" He asked, hoping that Kunai would know. Youkai were known to lie, and the only one he trusted was Kunai.  
"From the rumors I've heard, it is. Nurarihyon used it to defeat many Nura clan enemies. It was originally a Onmyōji sword."  
It took Kunai a second to realize that look was of confusion. "Onmyōji are humans who hunt Youkai, using Shikigami and various techniques. The Keikain family in Kyoto is considered the most skilled and dangerous."  
"Oh."

Rikuo had always been a good guy. He worked hard to keep innocent humans safe, and deal with the bad humans. Humans were white, youkai were black. It was easy. Nothing ever changed sides, or crossed.

Now? Life was becoming more than black and white. He was gray, and the gray area was only getting bigger around him.  
"Kunai. Have you ever seen me do anything..."  
"Like a youkai?" Kunai finished, knowing this conversation would be coming.

"Hai, Rikuo-dono. I never mentioned it, but it's the reason why I initially joined you. People can't usually see Youkai, especially through the cloak."  
"You gave off Fear. You do it a lot. " Kunai took a sip of tea before continuing. "The humans are correct about calling it Fear, and yours seems to do particularly well at putting fear into other's hearts. It's a youkai power that varies depending on the Youkai. Kappas, for example, will probably have a water based Fear. You've seen mine. I'm sure, if you had a lot of youkai blood in you, you could probably use it as a offensive or defensive attack. You mostly use it to scare humans and get compliance."  
Rikuo nodded, remembering the life threatening moment that had sealed the two's trust in each other. He hated youkai for scaring humans, and here he finds out that he's been doing it since the start. It also explained why he was able to silence some of his members when they were out of line. He'd always assumed that was him.  
"What else?"  
"Well, when you kicked over that Bear-youkai."  
"What? Why was that a Youkai-thing?"  
"A human wouldn't be able to kick over a 8 foot tall bear! That was definitely a show of youkai-strength."  
"It was all fur!" He argued back.  
"Morning!" The door slid open, revealing a cheerful Zen and the Youkai from last night, the floating head one, who glared at Rikuo. The two Demons promptly stopped their argument.  
"Ehh, Rikuo-dono. This is Kubinashi. After last night, you've made a rather poor impression with the Nura youkai."  
"I don't always make poor impressions." He spat back, before finishing his tea.  
"But when you do, you make them really badly, Rikuo-dono." Kunai sighed, before moving out of the way to allow Zen to check on the bandaging. The room had an awkward silence, as Zen removed the bandage.  
"It looks like it's healed up already. Must be the human in you."  
"Arigatou, Zen-sama." Kunai thanked the healer and Kubinashi followed Zen out of the room, before saying something. "Sōdaishō would like to have tea with you in the Council room. 15 minutes sharp." Rikuo nodded, and Kubinashi slid the door close.  
"What are we going to now?"  
"We're going to be honored guests until the week is up. I need to call Fujimoto, and figure out a cover for Beni." Rikuo said, figuring that much. This really put a damper in his plans. Spending a week in a youkai house? What was he thinking?  
"Hai, Rikuo-dono." Rikuo picked up the paper, and began to read, scanning for news of police raids and such,  
"I want you to find this Council room, and get a general idea of this building. When I'm finished, we'll head over there." Rikuo looked up, seeing how Kunai remained silent. "Kunai?"  
"Rikuo-dono. Please be on your best behavior!" Kunai bowed, making up for his disrespect. "I know how much you hate Youkai, but please be careful. It would be very easy for both of us to be killed."  
A vein pulsed on Rikuo's head, and he spoke through gritted teeth, annoyed. "Thank you for your concern, Kunai. But I don't plan on getting killed any time soon." Kunai rose.  
"Now, you have your orders." Rikuo stressed, using a little more formal talk. Kunai got up off the floor, and left the human alone to finish his newspaper and make calls.

* * *

Rikuo took a sip of tea, doing his best to remain calm, and steady his breathing. He could feel the insecurity and fear from Kunai behind him, and even though they knew this was the Council room, they didn't expect to be asked to sit in a actual meeting. But from the glances of the other youkai, it was obvious that didn't expect it either. He shifted on his cushion, still wondering why he was to sit next to Nurarihyon. What was this Youkai planning? He took another sip, hoping to hide his glare.  
"Sōdaishō, I must insist. Why must this human sit in this meeting?" One of the Nura members, asked, the annoyance and frustration easily heard.  
"For those of you unaware, this is Rikuo Nishimura." Many of the youkai sat up a little straighter, before looking at Rikuo. All the eyes on Rikuo made him shudder, and he turned away from them.  
"He's the leader of the Deathside Demons, a large human gang in the nearby area. He was able to determine the Shirohebi leader was a Youkai, and attacked one of our members. I brought him here to decide if he was a threat or not. He decided to flee, and I challenged him to a fight. Whoever drew first blood would win. Using Nenekirimaru, I won. By that, I have determined that someone in his bloodline was a Youkai." Nurarihyon stared down at every youkai, hoping if anyone would admit to having a fling with a human sometime in the past, and solve the problem right there. No one spoke.  
More hushed whispering from the council members, and Kunai shifted nervously behind him.  
"The penalty was to stay here for a week as a guest. I hope to change his hatred of youkai so he won't be a threat to the Nura Clan. "  
"Not going to happen." Rikuo snapped back.  
Youkai brought in a few plates of food, and the meeting continued, although quite awkward. It was a rather boring meeting, as nothing too important could be discussed around the human. Rikuo made it clear that he wouldn't be there if Nurarihyon hadn't made him.

Rikuo's phone rang, from deep within the borrowed robes. It was his Demon ring, that let him know if it was safe to answer it or not. He never answered it around other people, for fear of questions. Every head turned. He had the right to stay in contact with his gang, much to the youkai's annoyance. Kunai moved in closer, and Rikuo fiddled around in the robes for it.  
"Moshi-moshi."  
_"Rikuo-sama, when was that Kurihaki order supposed to arrive?" _Straight to business, Fujimoto was.  
"Last night."  
_"What about the Heiko order from Ukiyoe?"_  
"Also last night."  
_"That's no good. Word spread that orders were confiscated last night, but I didn't think they were ours."_ He paused, thinking, and doing his best to ignore the youkai staring at him.  
"Did it have any connection to the raid the night before? Could they be moving in finally?"  
_"I'll look into it. Yasuo had a close call a few days ago, and we've started warning members. A few of our members in the force say nothing's up, but I have a feeling this may be bigger than the police. Can you go check out the dock since you're in town?"_  
"If I can."  
_"Take Kunai with you. They may be looking for gang members, and you would be their top priority."_  
He grinned, as those were his exact thoughts. "Keep shipments to a minimum, tighten security."  
_"Hai Rikuo-sama. I hope you will return soon. Your Demons are restless without you. We haven't had a good fight lately."_  
"Sorry, Fujimoto. You'll have to fill in for me. Send me the most recent paperwork, and I'll get it done tonight. Just keep the gang together till I get back. I'll call you tonight with my report. And Fujimoto? Be careful. You are the 2nd in command." Fujimoto had been rather upset that he was staying longer than he said, but Rikuo was the leader.  
_"Hai, Rikuo-sama."_ He hung up, before standing.  
"I have some research to do. Can I borrow one of your Youkai to guide us?" I know you won't let us leave the house without one, so here's thinking ahead.

* * *

_Out of all the youkai he could have sent, it had to be these two._ Rikuo sighed, as the two youkai chattered to each other, barely making any progress towards the docks. He wanted them to lead, but they spent more time talking about how exciting it was to be going after police. They were much more friendly than Rikuo expected of Nura youkai.

One was Tsurara, an ice-powered youkai. She looked like a student, and acted like one. The other was familiar to the two, considering he was Aotabo, the strongest youkai in the Nura Clan, and the same one who held Rikuo captive. He was tall and muscular enough to be on a football team, but his personality was softer. Both Kunai and Rikuo held a grudge against him, but the youkai was more interested to know what was going on. Rikuo waved off their questions until they checked out the docks, where most likely the shipments were being held captive.

Kunai hung back, slinking behind Rikuo for his protection. Rikuo brought Tora-oni, and Kunai had all his knives with him. They went the back way, the saltwater smell hitting them before anything else. Rikuo savored it, having only visited the ocean once.

He turned the corner, taking the lead from the Nura Youkai. They ducked behind a large shipping container, and Rikuo checked out the area. Just as he thought, cops were flooding the area of the two ships. He hoped none of his members were caught.  
"Is that the shipment?" Kunai asked.  
"What shipment?" Tsurara asked, pushing her way to see between the two.  
"If you be quiet enough, I'll explain." He opened his phone, before hitting the speed dial by heart.  
"Bad news. Cops got the shipment, and it looks like some national's got their hands in it as well. Cut off all ties, and keep the gang low for a while. Send home the new recruits. Scope out a new location, but keep the location quiet."  
_"I'm already on it."_  
"That's what I was hoping to hear." He flipped the phone closed abruptly, before turning back to the Youkai.  
"Alright. I want to see if I can learn anything. Stay out of sight." And without another word, Rikuo slunk towards the cops, doing his best to remain unnoticed. He stopped next to a cop, before putting on an act. The cop was typical Japanese, although he was taller than usual, which only helped Rikuo's case. By slouching, he could lose a good few inches.  
"What's going on?" He tilted his head slightly, putting on a childish act, and squeaking his voice. Adults always fell for it, and getting information from them was easy.  
If any of the lower ranked Demons saw him...Fujimoto laughed the first time he was forced to use this, and she was lucky she was 2nd in command. Very. Lucky. This was one of his specialties for getting information. He had it down to a science, even though he hated doing it. He was still cute, and was probably never going to outgrow it.  
"What are you doing out of school? Where's your Mommy?" Cops. Always asking questions, never wanting to be asked. Rikuo did his best to ignore that comment, as that was the number one way to push his buttons.  
"I'm on my way home from school. Why are all the cops around? Did someone die?" Act innocent, assume wrong, and someone will always correct you.  
The cop chuckled. "No, nothing that bad. These shipments are confiscated because of suspected gang activity."  
"Oh. Won't the gangs get mad that you're taking their stuff?"  
"Why don't you run along before your Mom gets worried." The cop cut off the question, answering Rikuo's question.  
Rikuo nodded, doing his best to calm his anger. He faked a grin, before walking away and breaking into a sprint. He got a good distance away, before stopping, and facing the cop.  
"My Mom's dead, asshole!" Switching back to his normal personality, and giving the cop the finger, he took off before the surprised cop had time to give chase. The cop started to run after him, but he was no match for the youkai-powered boy.  
He sprinted in the opposite direction of the Nura Youkai , who yelled for him to stop. Kunai appeared next to him in a flash, having figured out his plan from the start and took his rightful place beside Rikuo. The two kept going at full sprint, and dashed down an alley before leaving the Nura Youkai behind. Rikuo had some more research to do, and they would only add to the trouble. And, maybe they'd get caught by the police!

* * *

_"Fujimoto here."_ Rikuo shifted on his phone, even though they were in the middle of town. He felt to exposed here, even with all the people around him. An attack could come from anywhere. What if a Nura member saw him?  
"The cops don't seem to have any leads. Let's keep it that way. Get me in contact with the local members who were working that night. No one was captured, right?"  
_"No one was captured. There was enough distraction that the few members working were able to escape. I may have a lead on who leaked the information."_  
"Alright. Tell me where to go. I've got a little free time on my hands."

* * *

Gin Kobayashi hurried about the single room he called a temporary home, packing. He knew the Demons were on his tail, and such he was in a big hurry to get out of here. He was supposed to be getting safe passage in exchange for information about the Demons.  
Word was the leader was in town, and he passed the information on. He supposed the police would hit the home base since the leader was away, and Gin had no intentions of doing any more work for them. He closed up the suitcase, before grabbing the last thing in the room, a picture of his well-loved and respected dead wife, Sashime.  
He hurried out of the room, before slamming the door behind him. He froze, as two figures appeared in his line of vision, both standing in the hall outside the door.  
One, a short blond kid, the other a short black hair kid. They didn't look like too much of a threat, but no one was supposed to know he was here. This was bad news, as they looked rather serious.

What were they doing here? Closer inspection, the blonde had numerous knives, the other a sword over his shoulder, relaxing with his eyes closed. The blonde looked tense, and close enough to pounce if he moved the wrong way. These were obviously not some lost brats.

"Gin Kobayashi. Age, 35. Wife, Sashime Kobayashi. Died 2 years ago. No children. Previous employment, security guard, desk clerk, and personal trainer." The black haired one spoke, not even bothering to open his eyes.  
"Joined the Ukiyoe division Demons over 6 months ago. Oddly enough, you never worked your way up like my other Demons. You were too content to stay in the bottom. You resigned your post yesterday."  
Shit shit shit shit. This was no ordinary kid. He could only be one person who knew this information about him. The one person in town who could.  
The Demon Leader himself had come to pay a visit. Rumors of his true appearance from those not involved with the gang varied. Tall and handsome, short and ugly, strict and cruel, soft and easy. Only those in the gang knew the truth, and they kept quiet about it. The only thing that was true was that the leader had grown the gang more than the previous head did, creating a powerful ally, or enemy, depending on how you acted. He respected humans, saving instead of killing. His morals were the gang's code of honor, and that was a very different idea for a gang. The leader was actually a teenager, who could be ruthless if he needed, and could silence you with a look. Gin had never seen the leader, since he spent most of the time in Hiroshi.

The blondie must have been the famed bodyguard, who was even more dangerous than the leader was. The bodyguard was no slouch, and you had a better chance of walking someday with the leader then the bodyguard.  
He knew the names of the two, rather dangerous they were.

Deathside Demon Leader Rikuo and his loyal Demon Kunai.

He knew that the leader was in town. He never expected to be tracked down so quickly, and by the leader himself. That duty was usually handed down to someone lower in rank. He must have really hit a nerve...

"We have few rules in the Demons compared to other gangs." The leader spoke again, before opening his eyes and glaring, sending chills down Gin's spine, and silenced any of his attempts to talk his way out of this. He wanted to move, to try and defend himself, but he couldn't move an inch.  
"1. Protect Rikuo at all costs." Blonde started, a throwing knife in each hand, raising the danger level up quite a bit.  
"2. Never abandoned your fellow Demons." Rikuo pulled the sword off his shoulder, and pointed it rather dangerously at Gin.  
"3. Honor is everything. Those who throw away their honor are not worthy of being called Demons." Blondie withdrew knives.  
"4. Never forget your human morals."  
"And 5. Those who reveal information about the Demons deserve one punishment, and one punishment alone." The last line was spoken in exact timing, earning a squeak of fear from Gin.  
"Get him, Kunai."

* * *

"What do you mean you lost Rikuo?!" Karesu Tengu cried in exasperation. How hard could it be to keep up with a human?! They had one job, and the human and his guard were able to slip them.  
Karesu thought letting them go in the first place was insane, and he hoped that Rikuo would not be allowed to leave again, if Nurarihyon was smart.  
"We're sorry, Sōdaishō! He made a break for it, and vanished into the crowd. We looked, but were unable to find him." The two body guards apologized again, sitting in front of the Shodaisho in the now empty council room.  
"At least he can slip away like a youkai." Nurarihyon gave a little grin.

"Tch. Well, at least I've done something to impress you." A door opened, and everyone turned to see Kunai and Rikuo, who was drinking tea, on the deck outside the room, enjoying the night view of the sakura tree. They had just returned, and Rikuo wanted to make an entrance.  
"Rikuo-kun!"  
"I had some business to handle, and you would only get in the way." Rikuo explained to the ice-girl, who looked about ready to kill him. Tsurara was furious. A human had embarrassed both of them, and he wasn't even sorry.  
"Why did you come back? You could have left town with ease."  
"I keep my promises."  
Nurarihyon sighed, before getting up off the floor. "Come, it's time for dinner. Will you be joining us?"  
"No." They had stopped by the new Ukiyoe Demon location, checked everything out, got dinner courtesy of a Demon, and returned here after calling Fujimoto and letting her know everything was OK. They had delayed the cops by a few days, at least. But it wouldn't last forever.


	5. Mirror Mirror, On A Bike?

**Here's the next chapter! I'm glad you are enjoying it. I'm doing my best to make sure it's as best as it can be, so post any questions/comments/critiques. Every review makes me work harder to make it better! No hard feelings, k?**

**And feel free to post anything you'd like to see. I'll do my best to fit it in, and maybe it will give me new ideas.**

* * *

Rikuo made his way towards the kitchen, having left a sleeping Kunai in peace. They returned rather late last night, so he let the youkai sleep. It was only fair that he deliver breakfast this time. He followed his nose and ears towards the what he assumed was the kitchen, enjoying the warm day. He was already thinking of what he wanted to do today, and that involved slipping out of the confines of the walls.  
He bumped into someone, who dropped a plate in surprise. Rikuo, on instinct, threw a hand out and caught the plate, and handed it back to her, who blushed. He felt quite embarrassed at himself, surprised he let his guard down so easily. The lady had a sad smile on her face, wearing a flower kimono, her short brown hair messy from work.

"Gomen gomen. Wait, who are you? Are you new around here? I've never seen you before. Are you with one of the clans?" The woman asked, curious, as Rikuo did not look like a youkai.  
"No, I'm human." Or, partially youkai, but he wasn't going to go into that with a stranger.  
"What Nurarihyon-sama is thinking these days continues to surprise me." She sighed. "I'm Wakana, also human if you didn't know." She tried to grin, but Rikuo could tell it was forced.  
"Rikuo." He introduced himself, before bowing slightly. What was a human doing in the Nura Clan? Was she being held hostage, like he was or was she here of her own free will?  
A crash followed, as the plate fell to the ground. Looking up, Wakana's face was pale from shock.  
"Wakana-sama?" Kubinashi appeared around the corner, before jumping to the women's protection, thinking that Rikuo offended or attacked her.  
"What have you done?" Kubinashi ordered, picking up Rikuo by the scruff of his robes, ignoring the 'honored guest' part. His eyes narrowed at the Nura clan member and Rikuo was about to defend himself, when the recovering Wakana placed a delicate hand on the neckless shoulder.  
"Kubinashi, stop. He did nothing wrong, he just surprised me, that's all." Wakana, having been broken from her trance, waved the protector off, before working to pick up the broken plate pieces.  
Kubinashi finally let go, before helping her pick up the pieces. Rikuo, having lost his appetite, and feeling out of place, bid them a rushed goodbye, before vanishing around the corner. He would get breakfast later.  
He wondered why she had such a longing look in her eyes.

She now realized why Nurarihyon was keeping the boy here. Even after 10 years, she could recognize those baby eyes anywhere. There was a slim possibility she was wrong, but she trusted her mother's intuition. Upon hearing his name, she knew it was him. It took all her strength not to shower the boy with hugs.

But the..look in his eyes. The look of bearing a large weight, and the fact that he didn't recognize her almost broke her heart. Her little boy, alone in the world, with the weight on his shoulders. Just like his father. She hoped Kunai was taking care of him. He needed a friend he could count on in this cruel world. Most likely, he had a youkai form like his father. Did he know about it? Or was it something else he lost in his time away?

"Wakana-sama?" Kubinashi questioned, seeing the dazed look on her face.

"Who was that boy?" She questioned.  
"He's the leader of a human gang called the Deathside Demons. He came here on business."

A gang leader? But, he was only 15! Just what circumstances lead to that? She hoped it would only be a matter of time before he remembered, and she could hear the full story.

* * *

"This town sure is big." Rikuo was finally being able to see the city during the day to marvel even more at it. Hiroshi was tiny compared to this place. The buildings were only getting taller.  
"Rikuo-dono, I wish you wouldn't sneak out. You'll only anger the Nura Clan more. They'll only put up with your antics for so long."  
"Relax Kunai. They're the ones who let us slip out so easily. And besides, I'm craving some good food, and we'll be back before they know it. I didn't get breakfast. And, you snuck out with me."

* * *

"Aiiiie! Rikuo-kun's missing! Again!"

* * *

"And if not?"  
"Well..."  
"You didn't think about that?!" Rikuo scratched the back of his head while grinning.  
The two were touring the town as night was falling. Rikuo was looking for something else for dinner, and having a wallet moderately full of cash didn't help that. They were splurging, and trying a few new foods. Kunai had taken a liking to sushi, while Rikuo refused to go even near.

Darkness was falling quickly, and it was evident just how much the darkness related to the number of youkai out.  
By following some of the youkai who were talking about food, they stumbled onto a place called Bakenekoya, which was a large youkai restaurant. Rikuo enjoyed the idea of a human eating in a youkai restaurant, and bravely took a table against Kunai's worries. This was only to end badly for someone. Now knowing that his scare tactic was called Fear, if he used it just a little bit, no youkai even batted a glance at him. He could pass as a youkai with a little concentration, although a bit more human.  
"Welcome to Bakenekoya!" A cat eared youkai came over, with a paw print bandana, ready to take an order. "The gambling is located in the back. What can I get you today?"  
"Whatever's on the special." Rikuo said, not caring what he got.  
"Your best sushi, please!"  
"Kuani, I thought I said no. This the 3rd place we've visited that you've ordered sushi."  
"Your best sushi please!" Kunai repeated, and Rikuo sighed in response.  
"Coming right up!" The waiter nodded, before heading towards the kitchen, ignoring Rikuo's displeasure. Rikuo, having never been to a youkai restaurant, calmly took in the sights, while Kunai was looking out for potential threats.  
The meal came quickly, even though the place was full. Kunai dropped his cloak, making it even easier for Rikuo to pass as a youkai, although watching Kunai eat with his tail was rather...odd.  
No sane human would be eating in a youkai restaurant, across from a youkai.

The building obviously was more for socialization and gambling than eating, but the food was good. Rikuo was a little put off by the Catnip Cocktail (a cat-youkai specialty he assumed), but it complimented the meal quite nicely. Kunai was just chowing down, as a group of very large youkai made their way to the table. The largest took his place in front of the table, casting a shadow onto the table.  
"Is there something we can help you with?" Rikuo, very cool, asked, glaring at the group, the tallest being twice as tall as him.  
"Yeah. We've never seen you before. You new in town?"  
"So, what if we are?" Rikuo took another bite of food, ignoring the large hovering mass of youkai.  
"You smell like human to me." Kunai fidgeted across him, while Rikuo motioned him to stay calm.  
"I have to make a living somehow."  
"You joking with me?"  
"Who said I was, dumbass?" The large youkai leaned down, and in one fell swoop lifted Rikuo by the collar, bringing him face to face with the 10 foot tall monster.  
"Rikuo-dono!"  
"You wanna say that again so I can hear?" The youkai threatened.  
"Maybe if you weren't such a dumb-ass, you could hear what people are saying." Rikuo glared dangerously, his voice dropping in pitch. He still sounded calm and collected, even though the youkai could kill him without a second thought.  
"I dare you to say that again." The youkai glared at him. "I bet you're just a stupid human who wandered in."  
"Eat him! Eat him!" His followers cheered.  
"Please, sir. Take any fights outside!" The waiters attempted to diffuse the situation, but to no avail.  
"Eat him!"  
"I suggest you put him down." The cheering abruptly stopped, so quiet some youkai had to check to make sure they hadn't gone deaf.  
A few hundred weapons were placed against the leader youkai's back, revealing Kurotabo, a feared and well respected member of the Nura Clan. The Black Monk was one of the Assault Leaders of the Nura Clan, and one not to be messed with.  
"He's under the Nura clan protection." Kurotabo ordered. The youkai weren't affiliated with any clan, so messing with the Nura Clan could spell trouble. The lead youkai growled, seeing he was beat at this moment, before harshly dropping the human. Rikuo stood back up, and adjusted the collar of his shirt, and mentally wished for a shirt that wasn't so painful when people did that. It seemed to be happening a lot lately. Although, if he stopped pissing people off...  
"You got lucky this time, brat. Come back next time without your Nura guards, and let's see what happens." The group of youkai turned, and quietly left the building, the face of the smart aleck burned into their minds. Ryōta Neko thanked Kurotabo for preventing a potentially costly fight, and offered a drink on the house. This offered the two rescued just enough time to make their escape.  
"Sōdaishō will not be please you slipped out again." Kurotabo turned around, ready to take the two troublemakers home, only to see them and the food suspiciously missing. A pile of bills sat on the empty table, payment and a little extra for causing the disturbance.  
He sighed, before giving chase after the two again. This was like trying to keep up with the 2nd heir all over again.

* * *

Rikuo sighed, before turning over, and over again. Kunai was sound asleep beside him, and even though it was late, he could not get to sleep. At least having nightmares was better than not sleeping. His sleep schedule was screwed up from late nights with the Demons, so you could say he suffered from mild insomnia. He rose from the floor, being careful not to disturb Kunai. He slid the shoji door open, before stepping outside. The cool, crisp air was a nice change from the stuffy room, and the sakura tree was blooming. Something caught his eye, and he headed towards the tree, his feet clad in socks. He was going to spend the night working to catch up on paperwork at the headquarters, but the monk youkai had caught up to them. Rikuo had gotten a firm scolding from him on the way back to the Nura clan. Nurarihyon had taken it all in good stride, and he commented it was a very 'youkai thing to do'. Rikuo was rather upset at the comment, but it was true, which is why it bothered him so.

There was someone sitting in the sakura tree, which was a little unusual considering how tall it was.  
What he assumed was a youkai (That hairstyle was ridiculous) remained quiet, only staring at him with unnatural demon red eyes. The youkai then turned towards the sky, where the full moon resided in all it's glory.  
"Haven't I seen you before?" He asked, hoping for something.  
They sat in silence, until Rikuo placed exactly where he saw this particular youkai before.  
"I remember you. You saved me that day. 'Let me handle it' you said, and then you knocked me out." He said, his voice louder than before.  
"Oy. You're ruining the peace." The smooth, low and charismatic voice floated down from the tree, slightly annoyed.  
"The peace? The peace? That's all you have to say?" He started to pace. Suddenly, everything made sense. He was rescued by a youkai, which was the only reason why he survived being attacked. Only youkai could defeat youkai. Thinking back, hadn't he seen that youkai before elsewhere? Wasn't he the same from that strange reflection in the mirror? And then, wasn't that the voice that told him to take the Demons lead? Why was the youkai showing up everywhere important?  
He turned back to the tree to ask the youkai something. The least he could do was thank him, and maybe get some answers out of him, even if he did have to climb up there and smack that know-it all smirk off his face...  
Laughing, but the youkai was gone. The laughter echoed, but the source was gone. The laughter receded, finally vanishing altogether. What was funny? He didn't say anything!  
He cursed his luck, before heading back inside for a warm glass of milk and his bed, hoping to get some sleep.

* * *

"I"m glad to get a birthday present...but this..." Kana Ienaga spoke to herself, referring the strange gift she received from her friend Kiyotsugu, the so called youkai expert at her school, and one of her few friends.

It was a rather strange looking doll, with green hair and mismatching eyes. She was 13 years old today, and she felt strangely calm about it. Other girls at the school would celebrate with large parties, but she preferred to hang out with her friends, even if they were all from the Kiyojūji Paranormal Patrol, a club dedicated to youkai and other strange sightings. She was not a expert, but she had seen her fair share of youkai, mostly without Kiyotsugu, who always seemed to be distracted by his equipment, or lost somewhere when the youkai appeared. All that seemed to happen in the club was the group of friends got in trouble or lost, instead of actually seeing youkai.

It was also near this time when her neighbor vanished 10 years ago. She was only 2 at the time, so she never actually met the boy. But her parents were distraught when it happened, because the father was murdered at the same time. Her family had kept a close eye on her, and many families started a neighborhood watch, worried that the murderer/kidnapper would return for a second attack, going after a girl this time.

The murderer was never found. Nothing was ever discovered about the boy's whereabouts. She shook her head. It was her birthday! Happy thoughts, happy thoughts...

She stopped, chills going down her spine. "I'd better hurry home." She quickened her pace, a very evil presence tickling at the back of her mind. She felt very exposed her, and wished for some human comfort. At least having people nearby would ease this feeling...

Wait, where did all the people go? The street was empty, except for the sound of a bike bell, heading for her. She didn't even look, her brain screaming run. She didn't know why, but she trusted her brain. She broke into a sprint, doing her best to outrun the stalker, whoever they were.

She screamed as the bike sped past her, blowing up dust. It wasn't what she was expecting. A mirror youkai, which was about 6 feet tall, riding on a bicycle. Ok, stranger things had happened to her.

"Happy 13th Birthday." Her nightmares coming in at full force. She had dreams about something like this for the past week, but they were just dreams.

Right?

"I've come for your, Kana-chan." The youkai's drifting voice proudly proclaimed.  
"N..no!" She squealed. She remembered, the mirror when she was six...the other deaths...a youkai was the cause of it.  
And she was next!  
"Kana-chan, let's play." The teeth of the mirror fell into a grin, which held malice behind it.  
"We'll pick up where we left off 7 years ago." Why was she standing here? Her feet refused to move, leaving her stranded in this conversation which could only end badly.  
"No!" She shook her head, breaking the spell the youkai had on her body. She ran as fast as she could the other way. She needed somewhere, a bike couldn't go, or somewhere with people. Why, why did she have to pick up that mirror?

"A game of tag? You can't run away." The youkai's smoky body set pedaling after her. She ran down stairs, trying to remember a youkai defensive stance that she learned a while back, but in her state of fear, the memory refused to come. The bike bounced down the stairs after her, gaining distance quickly.

She took off towards a busy intersection, or it was supposed to be busy.

"Kana-chan!" She pushed harder, the street coming into view. Not a single person was there. It was ghostly empty. Not even the wind was blowing. Her foot slipped out from under her, and she crashed to the ground with a squeal, her book bag cushioning her from the fall.  
She turned over, the youkai and bike a few feet away from her.  
"No! Someone help me!"She pushed herself backwards. She had to get up and run...But where? She couldn't outrun it forever.  
"Kana-chan..." A smoky arm reached out towards her, and she swatted it away. Her hand went through it, but the smoke reformed and gripped onto her arm.  
"Let me go!" She screamed, half in anger and fright. It slowly pulled her towards it. She was helpless, unable to do anything. If only she had an omyouji bracelet, or something she could use in defense.  
There was nothing to grip onto, nothing to stop her from being sucked it.  
And then it hit her.  
She was going to die here. Alone, and at 13. And no one would know what happened. Her parents, her friends, she'd just be gone. Poof. Done in by a youkai.  
"Woah. This is new." A rather calm voice spoke, with a hint of amusement, curiosity, and possibly anger. The youkai looked confused, and she saw two figures standing in the reflection of the blurry mirror. She turned, to see them better.  
Both were short. One of them had pitch black short hair, the other looked foreign, with blond hair. They were both teenagers, but Kana would accept any help at this point. The blond was crouching.

"What, did we get lost in the twilight zone?" The black haired one joked.  
"This is a parallel universe created by a youkai used to hunt prey."  
"Prey being humans." Blackie confirmed, putting both hands behind his head stretching, his lighthearted face not matching the angered and serious tone of his voice.  
"Hai." Blondie answered.  
"Who are you! This place is for me and Kana-chan!"The mirror youkai demanded, momentarily focusing on something other than Kana.  
The two took the whole situation rather easily, and almost humorously.

"Tch. youkai. Eating teenage girls. While I'm in town. Despicable." He sighed. "Kunai, destroy it." The blonde, now known as Kunai, charged forward, knifes appearing in each hand. In a second, the human was replaced by a reptile youkai, the tail also having a knife in hand.  
"Kasai no dansā!" The youkai's knives were engulfed in flames, and the youkai charged towards the mirror. Kana turned back to the mirror, struggling against the grip. If she didn't get out of the way, she was going to be fried!

Something metal flashed, and a sword cut through the smoky arm. She was yanked sideways by her arm, just in time for the reptile to attack the mirror.  
The reptile jumped in between them and the mirror.  
Her head was resting against the chest of someone. Looking up, it was Blackie who was sheathing a sword. They stood in silence for a few moments, watching the reptile totally and utterly defeat the mirror youkai. Even duplicating itself yielded no chance, as the reptile seemed to have endless knives.  
The black haired one stood in silence, offering no clues as to why they would save her.

Why was a youkai attacking another youkai? Who was the black haired one? Human, or youkai? Was she in worse danger than before?

She felt no ill will from them. She felt safe. She wasn't going to die today. It felt like a 300 pound weight was lifted off her shoulders. She wasn't going to die today. And with that, her world went black with cries of alarm from the black haired one.

* * *

"Rikuo-dono, you're the one who wanted to carry her." She felt herself jerked around a little.  
"I know, but she's heavy! And it's getting dark. We can't carry her around forever."  
She felt the steady back and forth motion. The movement was soothing and relaxing.  
"We don't know where she lives, her name, or anything."  
"We'll have to take her to the Nura clan if she doesn't wake up soon, and I know Nurarihyon won't be happy."  
Nurarihyon? Didn't Kiyotsugu say he was the youkai who snuck into people's houses, and was the leader of a youkai clan?  
"We'll just drop her off at the police station, they can deal with her. I'd like to be free of her. That's the 3rd human we've rescued today."  
"I know. I thought Nurarihyon liked humans, and yet he lets these youkai run around like whatever they want."  
"They might not be part of the Nura clan."  
"Then Nurarihyon won't mind if we kill a few." Even in her half awake state, she could hear the cockiness, and then a sigh from the companion. This was a rather strange conversation.  
"She's waking up." She blinked her eyes open, the brown eyes of her savior staring back at her. She blushed in response. He stopped, and set her down, where her shaky legs barely managed to hold. She was unable to hide the wild and confused look on her face, as she glanced around nervously.  
"You're safe. That youkai is long gone. Kunai made sure of that." Yes, the reptile youkai. Just who were these people? Were they both youkai?  
"Where are we?" The first question that came to her mind.  
"Somewhere in town. We've been wandering around for an hour now. We don't know where you live, or even your name, so I figured we would wait until you woke up. Now that you are, we can walk you home, and we can go eat. I know Kunai's hungry." He grinned, before rubbing a hand on the shorter blond's head, who gave a glare that would have started a fire, had the subject been a pile of wood.  
She shook her head. "No! I don't want to be alone." She bit her tongue, scolded herself for blurting that out. What was she thinking?  
...She was thinking she wanted to learn more about her saviors. If she let them walk away, she'd never see them again.  
They both looked surprised. "You, don't want to go home?"  
"No! I can't, right now. I don't want to be alone. Please, just stay with me?" She begged.  
Blackie sighed.  
"Alright. We'll stay with you for now." What? He'd actually agreed? That was even more surprising.  
"Thank you!" She gave a little bow, deeply indebted to these two. She would be youkai food without them, and even though one of them was a youkai, she trusted Blackie. But she had one question first.  
"Thank you for saving me, but are you a youkai? I saw...your friend, so are you one? Because I've never been saved by a youkai before..." Blackie straightened up a little bit, before grinning.  
"Maybe. I'm Rikuo, this is Kunai." He pointed. "Now, I know I'm hungry, and I can feel the hunger coming off Kunai." He ignored the question, only making her have more questions. Maybe? How could that be an answer?  
"Rikuo-dono!" Blondie, or Kunai, whined, embarrassed at the bluntness of him.  
"Come on, I know the best restaurant in town."******  
**

* * *

"This...is a youkai restaurant." She stated, hoping she got the shocked and surprised part apparent enough. Rikuo seemed to be rather dense. Or stubborn as a rock. She wasn't sure which.  
"So? It's the best place in town." Kana remained silent, before sinking lower into her seat, wondering about the question that was bugging her. Was Rikuo human or not? He looked human, but then Kunai did as well. Rikuo had a youkai bodyguard (Kunai cleared up her mistake in a second) and visited youkai restaurants. She knew no other humans who did this.  
She grinned, imagining if Kiyotsugu found this place. He would have a field day, and probably get himself killed.

But did she really care? They had risked their lives to save her, so it didn't really matter if he was a youkai or not. As long as they were not planning to eat her, she was fine.

The other youkai in the building avoided them like a plague, except the cat waiters.  
She was in for a even bigger surprise when the food showed up.  
"You...can afford all of this?" She had been expecting a small dinner, but what showed up could have only been paid by rich blood.  
"Kunai gets hungry when he goes full out. It's no big deal." Kana blinked, making sure the 5 plates of sushi laid out on the table was real. Her modest plate was nothing compared to Kunai's, or even Rikuo's two plates. Kunai was quickly working through the plates, and although Rikuo was slower, he was most likely going to eat both of them without a problem. Was having a big appetite part of being a youkai?  
She noticed the fierce glares Rikuo got from some of the other youkai. So, he wasn't popular. That mostly likely meant he was human. But why did he avoid the question? Did he really not want to tell her that bad? Or was he afraid?  
She hesitantly dug into hers, and was glad to find it quite delicious. She wasn't sure what she was expecting from a youkai restaurant.

Kunai finished his, and ordered another plate, Rikuo ordered dessert, and Kana forced herself to stop.  
"So, how old are you?"  
"Ano, 13 today."  
"It's your birthday! Congratulations. I should have ordered a cake."  
"It's fine! I wasn't going to do much anyway. The fact that you saved me can be a good enough present."  
"Well, I'm 15, but I'm not sure about Kunai. We live over in Hiroshi, but we're visiting Ukiyoe until the end of the week."  
"Why?"  
"Business."  
"Business?" She asked, confused. Wasn't he a little young to be dealing with business?  
"I'm the head of my trading business, and I came here to set up trade with a few of the local companies."  
"So that's why you can afford to feed Kunai."  
"Don't push your luck human." Kunai spoke rather harshly, earning a glare from Rikuo.  
"Ano, Rikuo? If...you really are a youkai, but are afraid to tell me, it's okay. I won't be scared." She said, hesitance in her voice.  
"No, I'm human. It's just complicated." He waved it off like it was nothing.  
Human? How could being human be complicated?  
"Complicated? Like, how you have Kunai as your bodyguard?"  
"Yeah, that complicated. It's a long story, that I won't be telling." Rikuo firmly said, cutting off that conversation.  
Kana yawned, reminding her of the time.  
"Come, we'll walk you home."


	6. Battle For Ukiyoe

**Not much to say today. The dub looks good, at least. I won't be watching it, but it hasn't been butchered, so maybe it'll grow the fandom?**

* * *

Kana lead the way towards her house, sleepiness quickly creeping up on her. She was surprised that Rikuo and Kunai were still going strong, but since Kunai was a youkai, she assumed that Rikuo was used to late nights. He looked as though he was. The silence was starting to get to her, so she asked the one question she thought Rikuo would answer.  
"How did you and Kunai meet?"  
"...Why do you want to know?" Rikuo titled his head, wondering why she was curious to know.  
"I'm bored."  
He chuckled. "Alright then. I guess we have a little time..."******  
**

* * *

******"We're going to be eating good tonight!"  
"This is hilarious, a youkai protecting a human!"  
"Stay back!" Kunai ordered, against the gang of 6 youkai. A crying little girl stood behind the reptilian youkai, her dead family members laying about, having been forgotten for now. Kunai had encountered the youkai having a killing spree, and leapt into action to protect the last living member of the small family.  
"Arughhh!" One of the youkai collapsed, a stranger taking his place. In the darkness, Kunai couldn't tell who it was. It felt human, which Kunai doubted. A human protecting a youkai?**

**"You know why I hate youkai? Because they have no honor. Killing humans isn't beneath them. And I can't handle that." With a flying kick, he knocked the nearest youkai back.**  
**"Another human!"**  
**"Why isn't he running?!"**  
**"Damn human!" The 6 members of the little gang were confused, obviously coming to the same conclusion.**  
**"I dare you to say that to my face." The human glared, a sword over his shoulder. It was too dark to tell, but Kunai had a feeling the visitor was rather cocky.**  
**"Damn human! Attack!"**

* * *

******"Oy. Hey!" For good measure, he nudged the fallen youkai with his foot, who had been severely injured in the battle and collapsed halfway through. No response, and the blood was starting to pool beneath him.  
He leaned down, before lifting the crying girl and comforting her and pulling out a cell phone. The girl must have been a under a year old, and Rikuo did his best, going up and down trying to calm the crying child. He had felt the youkai appear, and had rushed over as soon as he could. He never expected to find another youkai with the same idea.  
He felt horrible, almost breaking into tears himself. Another child displaced because of youkai. She would probably never remember her parents, and probably have the same problems he did, minus the being stalked by ayakashi. He wiped her little blonde curls, trying to remove the blood from them. Her clothes were stained with the blood of her parents.  
The baby calmed down, before looking up at him with wide eyes.**

**"Fujimoto? Can you send Kuwasawa down here?" He held his phone away from his ear, the girl yelling into it, thinking he was the one injured. "No, it's not me. It's someone else."**

* * *

******"He'll be fine with a few days rest." The doctor proclaimed, after a period of silence.  
"And the girl?" The doctor gave a little grin, seeing the famed gang leader worried about a little girl. It reminded him why he joined the Demons. The girl was sleeping in the next room, being taken care of by the motherly girls in the gang.  
"Her name's Mitsuki, from the family records. She's about 6 months old. She's hungry, but fine."**

**The whole gang was in an uproar when Rikuo appeared, carrying a baby and the doctor carrying a bloody patient. He trusted Kuwasawa to deal with the youkai, and left the baby with Fujimoto, who found someone to clean her up. Fresh clothes were brought in for her, and the girls generally cooed over her while Rikuo dealt with the doctor.**

**The doctor had quite a shock when the injured patient turned into a iguana. After Rikuo made it clear that it was real, and he was to be treated as normal, the doctor bandaged up the injuries, not asking any other questions, as expected.**

**"Thanks, Kuwasawa."**  
**"No, thank you, Rikuo-sama. I owe my business to you."**  
**"I trust you will stay quiet about this?" His face demanded respect, opposite of the worrying Rikuo a minute ago.**  
**"Of course! Please, call on me any time you need it."**  
**"Thanks. We still on for Thursday?"**  
**"Always, Rikuo-sama."**  
**"Rikuo-sama! Can you come out here?" Rikuo sighed, before following the sound of the call for him, which was barely overheard by the sound of crying.**  
**A bundle was stuffed into his hands, as well as a bottle. The bundle turned out to be Kaya, who stopped crying at the sight of his face.**  
**The girls cooed around him, taking in the sight of the cute gang leader with a baby.**  
**"She wouldn't stop crying, so we figured she would stop if you fed her, since she was so quiet around you."**  
**"Me? I've never fed a baby before!" He argued, looking down at the weak bundle in his hands.**  
**Mitsuki cooed and babbled, reaching up for the bottle in Rikuo's hand.**  
**"It's easy, just give her the bottle." Rikuo glared, before doing as instructed. Mitsuki accepted it with ease, and sucked on it, drawing more coos from the girls crowded around him.**  
**"You know, you can't keep her forever." Kuwasawa stated.**  
**"I know. I researched her family. The wife's extended family is dead, and the father's family is comprised of one lone grandman in a nursery home. She's got nowhere to go."**  
**"You'll have to turn her over to foster care." While this was a simple statement, Kuwasawa stepped away, seeing the anger on Rikuo's face.**  
**"I know. I've been that route. It's horrible. At least I knew my family." Memories rose up.**  
**"I'll be in my room. Do not disturb me." He ordered, before fleeing the doctor and the motherly girls for the safety of his room.**

**He took a seat on the chair, across from the sleeping youkai, and continued feeding the baby.**  
**He felt responsible for the parent's death, even if it was stupid. It made him more angry at youkai. He wished there was something he could do.**  
**Said youkai stirred, before reaching for the glass of water on the bedside. The youkai remained lying down, before looking around his surroundings in wonder.**  
**"Don't sit up, you lost a lot of blood."**  
**"Who...who are you?" The youkai was still tired, and talked slow.**  
**"Rikuo Nishimura. I was the one who jumped and and rescued you. And this is Mitsuki, cute thing she is." He found himself in baby talk when referring to her, much to his annoyance.**  
**"Thank you, for saving her."**  
**"Why did you do it? Why did you risk your life to save her? Were you planning on eating her?" He was joking about the last part, but the look of worry on the youkai's face was priceless.**  
**"I hate youkai who kill humans. Youkai against youkai is one thing, but humans are weak creatures. They don't deserve to die, especially one so young. Why did you jump in?"**  
**"I'm human, but I've hated youkai since the start. They killed my family, and I've been able to see ayakashi and through youkai's disguises since I was young. I'm pretty good with a sword, so I spend most of my time rescuing humans, or annoying youkai."**  
**"I have an offer to make. I'm always being hunted and bothered by youkai, and you're the first one to have a sense of honor. I'm in a pretty powerful position, and I need someone."**  
**Powerful? Just how powerful could this kid be?**  
**"Become my bodyguard. Become my #1, my closest, my number one protector."**  
**"But, I lost to the youkai. How can I protect you?"**  
**"You'll have time to train. And I'm not a weakling myself, you know. Together, nothing will stop us."**  
**For some reason, Kunai knew this was the right choice. He'd sensed something else in the human. Something youkai, which would explain his little history lesson. He would need someone to protect him. He and Kunai shared the same ideas.**  
**"I accept, Rikuo-dono."**

* * *

Something rang, a particularly odd phone ring, interuptting the memory retell.

"That's the Demon ring."  
"I know, at this late at night." They both seemed worried by the call, before Rikuo picked it up.  
"Moshi moshi. Alright. Evacuate everyone. We're on our way." Fun Rikuo was replaced by Serious Rikuo.  
"The NPD found the base. They're supposed to be there in 1 hour, and make arrests. We have to get there and clear everything out, or we'll be dead..." He turned, distracted by something, unease falling onto all of them. Kana shivered, knowing that feeling all too well. Rikuo withdrew Tora-oni, before glancing around.  
"Kana, get behind me." Rikuo lifted his sword up, for it to be met by a clash of metal. The shadows dissolved, revealing a gang of youkai.  
The gang of youkai that tried to eat Rikuo at the restaurant to be exact. 20 of them against 2. The odds were on the impossible side.  
"Well, we've faced worse situations."  
"We've found you. There's no Nura member here to save you now, human." The leader spat.  
"Who says I needed them in the first place?" Rikuo spat back, before pushing back the sword, and the youkai stepped back. The rest of the gang of youkai filled in beside him, eager for a battle.  
"Yeah, when we're done with you, we're going to eat your little girlfriend." Kana remained silent, her better judgement tell her not to correct the youkai.  
"If you touch a hair on her head, I'll fucking kill you." Rikuo leapt forward, eager to end this battle to get to his gang in time. Kunai followed, flames following him as he went.  
Rikuo ran for the leader, only for his sword to be stopped by a metal pole.  
"I will not let you near our leader!" A lackey proudly proclaimed, and Rikuo was pushed back, before steadying himself on his feet. Rikuo stepped to the left, swinging his sword right. Sparks few as metal hit metal. The pole groaned, and the lackey jumped backwards. Using the momentum, Rikuo pushed forward, and slicing towards the pole once more. He angled the sword before coming down and the lackey held the pole horizontally as defense. Rikuo's sword sliced through the metal pole, before killing the youkai, splattering blood.  
He groaned, seeing the new stains on his last good shirt. This was only non-business shirt left that wasn't sliced/ruined. He'd have to stop and get new clothes.  
Something flashed, and he leaned backwards as something shiny flew towards his face. It sliced a good chunk of his arm, but, had he not avoided that, he would be in far worse shape. It wasn't life threatening at this point, but it would make the rest of the battle and helping his gang more difficult.  
Two youkai came after him this time, one using a ax, and the other a knife. The ax user took another swing, which Rikuo barely ducked.  
"Missed me." He couldn't contain the cockiness, even if he tried. Knife came next, and Rikuo jumped onto his left foot, missing a wide swing. "Missed me again." He grinned, before jumping back with his back planted firmly against the wall, leaving no escape.  
"Uh oh." His eyes went wide, as one of Kunai's knife flew at him, slightly smoking. It smacked into the wall next to him, courtesy of Kunai's good aim. It wasn't an errant shot. It was a helping hand.  
Reaching an arm up, he pulled it out of the wall, before flinging it at the ax youkai. He was never good with them, but he had a little lesson from Kunai, so he could at least hit a 8 foot tall youkai and do some damage. He pushed off the wall, and sliced through the chest of the knifed youkai.

Blood streamed down his arm, and his fingers were starting to tingle, showing signs of blood loss. He had defeated two, Kunai three, but there were many left, eager for the turn. He withdrew the knife, before throwing it back to Kunai, who ferociously used it and his fire based Fear to kill another youkai. He ducked, as something sharp flew over head.

A screamed drew his attention, Kana in danger. The youkai having pulled her out of the battle.  
He already saved her once, and if he'd only said 'No, we're taking you home' she wouldn't be at risk of dying again in one day. On her birthday even.  
His blood boiled, and he dashed forward. He was not going to let them kill another human.

Using inhuman strength, his sword went through the other youkai, and he pulled it out as he ran towards the sound of Kana's scream. He lobbed one head off, a arm off the next. Two youkai were fighting Kunai, and the other two were pulling a struggling Kana along with them. He dispatched another with a slightly wild attack.  
Another youkai appeared in front of him, challenging him and preventing him from moving forward. Three more stood behind him.  
He would never make it. Kana, his gang, time was ticking against him.  
But when had the Demon ringleader himself said no to a challenge?

"Rikuo-kun!" A girly voice sang.  
That...Wasn't that the Tsurara?  
Someone landed in front of him. A gust of cold air, a white dress, blue hair. The youkai were covered in solid ice, before being destroyed.  
"Knowingly attacking a Nura clan member! How despicable!" Rikuo wasn't going to argue with Tsurara at this point about the political incorrectness of that statement.

Aotabo and the monk youkai dashed towards Kunai behind him. He was grateful that the three youkai had managed to track them down. Him, grateful for youkai?  
Well, he wasn't stupid enough not to admit it.

Rikuo ignored them for now, and ran towards Kana. He put all his speed into catching up to them, and with ability surpassing even his unusual standards, he and Tsurara worked through the rest of goons in front of them. The leader, having seen the Nura clan show up, decided to flee.  
"Come out and face me, coward!" Rikuo called, just in time to watch the leader vanish. The two goons look surprised to see the leader so blatantly flee, and Kana took that opportunity to break free, before running to Rikuo and Tsurara, hiding behind both of them.  
"Rikuo-kun, you're bleeding!"  
"I know Tsurara. But this night's not over yet. I need the Nura youkai's help. Please."  
Tsurara sighed, seeing the troubled and determined face of Rikuo. It ached her heart, reminding her of the Nidaime, who had that same look when he was troubled.  
"The Nura Clan will assist you." She stated, hoping it was something good. A nice fight, maybe?  
"Alright. My gang's in trouble."

* * *

"What are we supposed to do with this?"  
"Are these files important?"  
"I ALREADY TOLD YOU. BURN IT. BURN IT ALLLLLLLL." The red haired man screamed, pulling his hair out while running around. He was too low in the ranks to be dealing with this! And where was the Demon himself when you needed him? The man had finally resorted to burning everything but the building, and leaving before the cops showed up.  
"Akiyama. Isn't that a little overkill?"  
"And who are you to be jud...HOLY SHIT." Akiyama, the easily flustered 5th seat, the highest one on duty today, screamed at the sight of the youkai, all of which looked they just came out of a fight. His eyes focused on the man in the middle, none other than a bleeding but pissed Rikuo-sama.

Rikuo was glad that Kubinashi hadn't shown up. At least Kurotabo looked like a monk and Ao and Tsurara could pass as human. He had already taken control of the situation as they passed by the numerous low ranked members, who were doing their best to burn...everything. A headache had immediately came on. Who the hell ordered the paperwork burned? It took him months to do that, and here they were going and burning it!

"Rikuo-sama! I'm sorry, I was just surprised at your..friends? Are you hurt?" The man squeaked. He had never seen this people before, but they made quite a sight, even with the two school girls. Rikuo could already imagine the rumors that would be floating around. One school girl was hard enough to explain, but two? Fujimoto would have his head. Kana had refused to go home, and Tsurara had taken her schoolgirl form.

"I'm taking over now. Go tell everyone that I'm here and to stop FUCKING BURNING ALL OF THE PAPERWORK!"  
"Yes, Rikuo-sama!" Akiyama, glad to be relieved of duty, ran off. Rikuo sighed. There were always weird ones in the batch.

"You two, help everyone get out of the building, and take everything you can. Load it up any remaining evidence, and give them the Nura address. Have them leave it by the gate. Kunai, keep Kana safe. That's an order. Tsurara, Kana and Kunai will put out the fires before the whole building comes down. Damn it, I have to sort this out before the cops get here. And lastly, do not get caught by the police, get out before that." Rikuo pulled a fire extinguisher off the nearest wall, and gave it to Kana, Tsurara already equipped with her own fire extinguisher.  
Tsurara was at least happy he used something other than 'youkai', but did it have to be her given name?

Rikuo took off running for his office, that housed the most important pieces of Demon information, and years worth of paperwork.

He filed through the paperwork, stacks sorted by the most important to least. The keys to the room sat next to him. He had about 10 minutes until the cops got here, so it was time to start leaving.  
What was that smell? Smoke? But shouldn't Tsurara and Kana gotten the fires out by now? He stuck the last files into a folder, before heading for the door, only for him to stop, feeling the heat radiating off of it. The doorknob looked...odd, as it was slowly melting.

This was the only door out of the room. Wow, this was stupid of him. Why did he stay in here? He could have just grabbed everything...

Okay then. New plan. Water? Nope.  
The ceiling creaked above him, loudly letting everyone know that it was coming down soon.  
Smoke started to fill the room. His options were to get through the door, which held back fire, or somehow cut his wall through the wall and escape.  
Alright, he had done stranger things before. Cutting his way through the wall shouldn't be too hard, right?  
He coughed, the smoke filling the room as flames were starting to creep in. Smoke was blocking his view, and his time was running out. He stumbled around, before tripping on something. He landed on his back, the flaming ceiling staring back.  
Something crashed above him, as the ceiling came down in flaming chunks. Wood, metal, anything that if you put on fire, could kill a person.  
He rolled out of the way, the pieces of wood catching his clothes on fire.  
_"Baka."_ The voice was full of displeasure, aimed at him, before his world went black.

* * *

They were surrounded by pure darkness, other than the moonlight on him and the youkai in the sakura tree.  
"What am I doing here?" He asked, hoping for more than the silence he got last time. "What happened to my gang?"  
"You brought me here. Why don't you answer that question?"  
Woah. An actual answer. "What do you mean? Who are you?"  
"You know who I am. You've always know, you just don't want to admit it."  
The youkai leapt off the tree, before landing in front of Rikuo. The youkai yawned from boredom, before smirking. The youkai was taller than Rikuo, and somehow managed to put off a serious air of power and leadership.  
The youkai was gone from his sight, before appearing inches from his face. "I've saved your life twice now. It's about time you repaid me."  
"What do you want?" Rikuo took a step back in surprise. Was that a youkai trick, some sort of Fear?  
"Light is radiant because there is darkness. Darkness is sublime because there is light. We're two sides of the same coin. I want you to wake up and accept that, and take our rightful place, where we really belong. Not with those humans."  
"But I'm human!" The youkai pushed forward, grabbing onto his robes.  
"You know that's a lie. Staying with the Demons is going to end in disaster. The gang is falling apart. Cops are on your trail, and it will only be a matter of time before you'll be sharing a cell with Haraguchi. Just cut them loose now."  
Rikuo pushed the youkai back. "You're wrong. I'm going to find the snitch, and I'm going to save my gang. Because they're the only thing I have left, and I can't abandon them now!"  
The youkai titled his head, before laughing. "Stubborn and with all the loyalty. I guess it will only be a matter of time before I'll be needed again. Maybe this time you'll remember."  
"Who am I? I'm you. The side of you you don't want to remember. If you accept the truth, you will remember everything. Your parents, your past, your family, and me. Next time we meet, I hope you'll remember me." The youkai turned and walked towards the darkness.  
"I'll be waiting, Rikuo. Don't keep me waiting forever." The youkai winked, before walking into the darkness like a snake, his white hair the last thing to vanish.******  
**

* * *

"Rikuo-dono!" Rikuo opened his eyes, before sitting up. The Nura Youkai, Kunai, and Kana were all staring at him, everyone's eyes filled with worry, which was an unusual sight. The remains of the burning building was surrounded by red and blue lights of the police cars, and was easily seen from this distance, which was very far away from the police blockade.  
Gripped tightly in his hands was his sheath and the burnt but undamaged metal of Tora-oni. It was the most logical reason for how he escaped unscathed.  
But he didn't remember any of it.  
Don't keep me waiting forever? What the hell is that supposed to mean?  
"Rikuo?" Kana broke him from his thoughts, and at the sight of her worried face, he grinned, ignoring the throbbing of his arm and wrists.  
"Kana. I'm glad you're okay. But now, we're taking you home." Rikuo rose from the ground, before leaning onto Kunai.  
"Kunai, stop it. I can feel your anger from here. You obeyed my orders, and that's what matters."  
"But that's not what a bodyguard is supposed to do!"  
"Will one of you walk her home? I want to get something to eat on the way. I'm starving."  
"No."  
"Don't listen to her."  
"No, I'm not going home..." Rikuo waved her off. "Do whatever it takes to get her home, youkai. Tsurara, can you guide us home?"  
"See you at home Ao!" Tsurara waved goodbye, before following Rikuo. "Rikuo-kun, let me fix your bandage."  
Ao sighed, seeing he was stuck with the stubborn girl.  
"No Tsurara! I want food. Now."

"I'm not going home." Kana stubbornly refused, crossing her arms. Aotabo sighed. This was going to be very difficult.


	7. Becoming the Demon Himself

"We're back!" Tsurara called, giving the all clear signal that every youkai knew. The gates swung shut behind the ragtag group. It was amazing for the two outsiders to watch the garden fill so quickly with youkai. Ao had caught up to them, Kana safely left at home. Rikuo wasn't sure how he did it, but he didn't want to ask, considering how flustered the youkai looked. The group stopped by the flood of youkai, questions shot faster than Rikuo could understand. Even Kunai looked like he was ready to fight his way through, allowing the injured human some rest. Tsurara was more than happy to tell what happened, while Aotabou and the monk looked rather calm. Rikuo just now remembered the monk's name was Kurotabou, the same one who rescued them in the restaurant.

Zen was called to bandage Rikuo, but even Kunai managed to escape relatively unscathed.

They were relying on youkai abilities, so Rikuo didn't feel all that bad that he was the only who who suffered any damage. He didn't want to think what would have happened if the Nura youkai hadn't shown up...

He hated to admit it, but even he could see the fact that the youkai were winning. He could at least...thank Nurarihyon. But that was all. Nothing changed...

Aw, what was he saying? Of course things changed. Kunai knew it, he knew it, heck, everyone probably knew it! He wasn't threatening to kill youkai who trespassed into his room, he was eating breakfast with the youkai, he was starting not to...hate youkai.

It was a nice thought, but he'd be leaving here in a few days. Just like everything else in his life.

* * *

He sighed, as his phone rang persistently next to him, with the Demon ring, which was never good news. The house had finally quieted down, a few hours after the last drunk had fallen asleep. The youkai had thrown a mean party, and Rikuo had barely managed to escape without getting sucked in. Kunai had been pulled in as well, and all Rikuo asked was for Kunai not to get too drunk, as you never knew what would happen.

"Moshi moshi." He yawned, blinking his eyes open, trying to clear the fog from his head. If the building was under attack again, and everyone was drunk and hungover...

_"Rikuo-sama. A police squad was just set out to your house, with orders and warrants to arrest you for suspected gang activity."_  
"Kuso." He flailed to a sitting position. Thankfully, he kept nothing of real importance there, but that meant a huge security breach. Not many knew his address, as that was a huge safety issue. Knowing his full name was alright, as even if they got his name, it didn't match his foster parent Beni's name.

That also meant returning to the Hiroshi area was impossible. They had his name, address, and probably evidence against him. He'd be sentenced and jailed before he knew it, even with his age.

_"Rikuo-sama? What should we do?"_ Fujimoto asked, worry in her voice. They both knew the repercussions. His house was no longer safe. Hiroshi was no longer safe. Tracking him down in Ukiyoe would be more difficult, and he could change his name, further delaying them.

Either another snitch was in the gang, or the raids were finally catching up to him.  
The white haired youkai's words rang in his head. _Staying with the Demons is going to end in disaster. The gang is falling apart. Cops are on your trail, and it will only be a matter of time before you'll be sharing a cell with Haraguchi. Just cut them loose now._

...How had he known the name of the previous leader? Had he been following Rikuo around? Was he the snitch?

He paused, before chuckling at the thought of a proud youkai like he was working with humans. Why had he even thought of it?

Rikuo could easily take over the Ukiyoe district, but he needed to put someone in charge. 1st in command of the Hiroshi area, but 2nd overall. Someone he could trust. And they had to come and be officiated, with someone to notarize it.  
And that meant they had to come here.

* * *

It was a new day.  
"Where are the other youkai today?" Rikuo spat at the healer youkai, a little stressed from all the trouble he was dealing with. They were standing outside the gates, waiting for today's escort. Kunai managed not to get drunk last night (how was another mystery), and such earned a sushi lunch as a reward.

Zen was the only one who showed, in his purple kimono with his tattoos showing.  
"I'm...the only one today." Zen tried to say this proudly, but something else was there. Was it...embarrassment? A sly grin appeared on Rikuo's face, knowing it was true.  
"The Sōdaishō believes that you won't run away so easily, knowing you would be leaving a defenseless youkai alone." Zen looked absolutely furious at having to admit it, gritting his teeth. Rikuo briefly wondered how hard Nurarihyon had to push his position to get Zen to do this today, before laughing.

Damn youkai saw right through him. As much as Rikuo wanted to ditch Zen, he couldn't. They would only be doing paperwork today, so it would be an easy job. He would stay out of trouble today, for Zen's sake.

"Just stay close to me and don't kill anyone while we're there. And you can't tell anyone where this building is located. I'm trusting you on that. Kunai could easily...remove you, if you do tell."  
Zen looked surprised (and glad) that Rikuo wasn't going to vanish and leave him, before nodding, and the two youkai followed after the Demon Leader

* * *

Needless to say, Rikuo took so many shortcuts and turnarounds that Zen wasn't sure if they were still in Ukiyoe by the time Rikuo finally stopped at a building.  
They finally arrived at the building, a rather normal looking building.  
Inside, was another story.

"Rikuo-sama!"  
"Konnichiwa Rikuo-sama!"  
"Is it really him?"  
"Wow, he's so cute!"  
"Is he really 15?"  
"What about his bodyguard?"  
"I hear he showed up with two girls last time. School girls!"

Rikuo sighed, the rumor mill at full force today. Kunai was glaring at the loudest gossipers, and quickly silencing them. Rikuo, wearing a jacket to hide last night's injuries, continued on, towards the current leader of this division, farther inside the building. He had taken over when the previous leader retired a few months ago. Rikuo never had a chance to meet the man, but he trusted the previous leader's decision.  
"Kokatsu." He plainly spoke, the said person turning with a grin to greet the only person high enough to call him without honorifics.

"Rikuo-sama, and his two...friends? Oh, I won't question the great Demon himself! I see you're doing well. I hope that last night wasn't too dangerous." Kokatsu winked. For some reason, Rikuo immediately hated the man, not just for last night. His gut was telling him to avoid this man, and he trusted it. He would have to keep his guard up.

He felt Kunai tense up, sensing the distrust and unease from Rikuo. A quick glance said even Zen seemed a little put back by the man.  
Rikuo glared before asking through gritted teeth. "What I want to know is why you weren't on duty last night." Venom dripping from his voice, Kokatsu backed up a step, waving his hands.  
"Well, you see, I was, uh, on a date!" Rikuo blinked. Demons had the right to come in whenever they could, but higher ranked Demons usually didn't take days off without having someone beneath them fill in. If the 1st was gone, the 2nd was here, etc. So the fact that a lowly 5th seat was the highest ranked last night was highly suspicious. Someone inside planned it that way.

"Where's Akiyama?" The lowly 5th seat resigned to burning everything. Rikuo was going to have a few questions for him.  
"He's not coming in today. Something about stress and hair loss? He's always a flake."  
Rikuo stepped closer, lowering Kokatsu down to his level with a firm grip on the man's collar. "He was less of a flake than you were last night." Fear emanated from Rikuo, turning the sassy and uneasy 2nd in command turned into a limp noodle.  
"Although he'll receive a word from me about his paperwork decision. Tell him I'll see him when he comes in." He finished, the anger almost gone from his voice, instead commanding.

Kunai caught Zen's gaping mouth at the blatant use of Fear, but said nothing.

"Yes, Rikuo-sama." Rikuo released the 2nd in command, wishing for Fujimoto. He needed someone he could trust here. Someone he fought in battles with, back to back. You could learn a lot about a person from battles, and if this was going to be his 2nd, he was going to be in a world of trouble.

"Fujimoto and Yasuo from Hiroshi will be arriving here tomorrow." He stated, looking at the onlookers at the little display.  
"Why? Has something happened?" Kokatsu quickly regretted saying that, as it was out of line. You didn't question orders without good reason. And that was not a good reason.

"I'm taking over command today until further notice." Kokastu remained silent. Rikuo caught the hidden anger in the man's eyes, as well as something else.  
"Uh, yes! What brought this on?" His perkiness was gone, replaced with fake cheer, making Rikuo's gut even more suspicious.

"A change of scenery." No one was to know the true reason, other than Yasuo and Fujimoto on why he was transferring.  
"Ok then...Well, I'll let everyone know." Kokatsu saluted. Rikuo sighed, before rubbing the back of his neck, a frustrated look on his face.  
"Come on Kunai. Let's go sort paperwork." He was most likely going to regret this.

Kunai and Zen followed Rikuo to his new office, where the paperwork was returned from the Nura clan. He had a Demon come pick it up before he could really see it, so he wasn't sure how much of it survived.

* * *

******"**HOLY CRAP." He yelled in surprise upon seeing the paperwork that survived, littered around the room, some with scorch marks. He seriously regretted not letting Akiyama burn the rest of it.  
"Is this what a human gang leader does all day?" Zen asked, seeing life on the other side.  
"Most of the time, no." He replied, before surveying the rest of it. The stacks littered the room, leaving almost nowhere to sit.  
"Rikuo-dono. Glaring at it won't make it go away."  
"BURN IT KUNAI!" He said, 100% seriously and slightly hysterical.  
"No." Kunai stated, before setting to work on the first pile.  
"Fine." Seeing he lost, he took a seat behind the desk, sighing at the fact the stacks were taller than him. "We'll get started. Was I the only one who got bad feelings from Kokatsu?"  
"No. I sensed youkai on him." Kunai said, as the papers in his hand, which were badly damaged, fell apart, earning a sigh out of him.  
"I did as well." Zen confirmed.  
"We'll be extra careful around him. I'll see if I can find someone to replace him soon. I'm not running the Demons with someone like him running the show while I'm not here."

* * *

"Rikuo-sama! Kokatsu-san is asking for you outside." A girl relayed the message, before vanishing from sight from the door. A mound of stapled papers sat on the desk, almost completely blocking the leader from view, but smaller than earlier.

The two had made quite a dent in the paperwork, but they still had some time to spend to finish it. A pile of old, outdated, and highly risky papers sat with BURN marked on all of them. Kunai was going to deal with them later, considering his Fear was fire based.  
"Thank god! I don't think I can sort any more papers." Rikuo leaned back in the chair before groaning. They had been at it for the past few hours, and Zen had since fallen asleep, the half eaten plate of food next to him. Kunai and Rikuo absorbed their lunch, sushi and an american cheeseburger.  
"We'll leave the good-for-nothing sleeping." He said, referring to the fact that Zen had refused to help with paperwork. Kunai placed his last stack of papers onto Rikuo's desk, before going out the door. Rikuo grabbed Tora-Oni's sheath as he went.

"Kokatsu? What's going on?" Ever calm, Kunai sensed doubt, but not a single bit of fear.

It was night, and the youkai aura was strong. They were outside, near the docks in a wide open and dark space. It was very quiet, especially considering they were supposed to be meeting Kokatsu. Why had Kokatsu asked for him outside? Was there some information he didn't want the other Demons to know? But his office was safe from prying eyes, so why out here?

Was the thick youkai aura something else? Was this a trap? Was Kokatsu not even coming? Or was he part of this?  
"The great leader of the Deathside Demons. Human, but managed to become leader at the tender age of 15. His sword skills are top notch, but he's still only a child." A voice spoke from the darkness, and Rikuo reached for Tora-oni and calmly drew it.  
"And here he comes and shows up with a Nura member, acting so big and mighty. How did a human gain the protection of the Nura clan, I wonder?" The voice shifted directions, coming from behind them. Both of them turned, looking for the voice's origin.

"I lost a bet. Is that all you are going to do, hide in the shadows? Or are you going to do something interesting?"  
"A human who hates youkai, getting the protection of the Nura clan. Such hypocrisy."  
"Show yourself! Only cowards hide in the darkness!"  
"But isn't that what you think of youkai? One of the few humans who could see youkai, cursed forever alone."  
The voice shifted locations again, and a can clattered across the ground, startling both of them.  
"I'm getting tired of these games! Where is Kokatsu?"  
After a moment of silence, he continued. "Or is he part of this? I bet he's been the snitch all along. Only someone as high as he could get the information."  
"You're smart, at least. I want the Demons. I'm going to kill you, and become the new leader. I'll get rid of your stupid human rules that's holding the Demons back from becoming the top gang of Japan." The voice stepped out of the darkness and into the moonlight. It was a pitch black leopard, with razor sharp claws and teeth that almost glowed in the moonlight.  
"Idiot! The human rules are the reason why the Demons has grown so much. Everyone there, has someone to protect. They joined to become stronger, and prevent unnecessary deaths! Removing those rules and becoming more ruthless would be the downfall of the Demons."

"Such big words from a measly human."  
"Don't underestimate me! I've done more than you could ever do, youkai. If you think you're going to kill me, and take over the Demons, you're out of your mind."

"I am Kokatsu Kurohyo." The leopard grinned, having enough of the small talk. "And I'm going to kill you. Yami ni tokeru." The leopard leaped, before vanishing into the darkness, his Fear activating. Both of them glanced around, but he was gone from sight and sound. Rikuo and Kunai stood back to back, looking for any sign of the leopard. The black mass blended in with the shadows form the moonlight. Only when it stepped into the moonlight was it visible. Kunai slashed downwards, sending flames towards the last seen area, but the shape only slunk away into the darkness.  
"Rikuo-dono. We need to cut through his Fear, before he cuts through us."  
"Good plan. How, exactly?" Instincts taking over, Rikuo blocked a paw, using his hand to keep the sword from being pushed back. He skidded backwards against Kunai, before pushing the youkai off and trying to do some damage before he was gone again. Blood dripped off his sword, not his thankfully.  
"Anytime you want to put that plan into action, Kunai." Clouds blocked the full moon's glow, creating more darkness.  
_"Mugen kunai!"_ Kunai yelled, sending out a wave of flaming knives towards the black mass as it was moving back into the darkness. Kunai's Fear was fire based, and his knives created interesting weapons when lit on fire. His fire didn't affect Kunai, but it did everyone else, so you had to be sure which knives were on fire a minute ago.

"We have to corner him or he'll keep slipping away from our attacks. His Fear isn't invincible. We can still touch him, and he can still touch us."  
The youkai appeared again, and Rikuo ducked. The youkai was met with a face full of fire. It hissed in pain, before Rikuo slashed upward with his sword, sending the youkai back.  
Rikuo and Kunai had spent many battles together, and being master and follower, they could work together with great ease.  
Rikuo and Kunai had fought in more battles together than Rikuo and Fujimoto had, and it showed. They moved fluidly together, one defending and one attacking.  
A black mass jumped towards Rikuo, and both of them aimed towards it. The mass vanished, and the real leopard revealed himself, claws aimed to kill Rikuo.

Kunai acted without a moment's hesitation, and pushed Rikuo out of the way, sending him crashing to the ground.  
The leopard found it's mark, sinking it's claws into Kunai's chest.  
Kunai coughed, blood spilling onto the concrete from his wounds. The leopard released his fear, looking quite smug with himself, before digging the claws deeper and then releasing Kunai, who collapsed to the ground.

"You son of a bitch! " Rikuo readied Tora-oni, as the leopard jumped to attack him. He used to sword to hold back the leopard and his claws, before pushing him off.  
It was an eloquent dance between the two of them, circling and attacking.

_Damn it. Damn it all. I can't keep up with his youkai tricks! He keeps vanishing before I can do any damage. I've managed to dodge most of his attacks, but I'm getting slower._

"It seems I've underestimated you. I'll have to work harder than." The leopard grinned, before speaking again.  
_"Yami ga subetedesu."_  
The world vanished, everything turning into pure darkness. Not black, pure darkness. No shadows, or grey areas.  
Everything had vanished. Sight, smell, sound.  
Silence and darkness.  
Hand in hand.

Something snarled, drawing him back to the fight. This was obviously another part of the youkai's Fear. He whirled around, ready to meet the attacker.  
Something furry brushed up next to him, before vanishing again into the darkness.  
_"Rikuo-dono."_ Kunai's labored voice reached him, even through the leopard's Fear. _"You must live. The Demons depend on you. You are the glue, which holds everything, together. I'm sorry, that we couldn't be together for longer."_  
"No! We promised! We would stay by each other side's until we take our final breathes!"  
_"You're..the most interesting human I've met."_ Kunai chuckled, his voice raspy and heavy.  
"The lowly human. Weak, spineless, defenseless. Unable to protect the ones he promise to protect. A sad, but everyday occurrence."  
_I'm. Not. All human! I am part youkai._

**"You are really pathetic right now. Can't even defeat a youkai by yourself. Tch.**  
**The answer is right in front of your face, and you can't even see it. I guess you'll have a chance to figure it out next time. I can't let you die now. We've got too much to do."**  
Rikuo saw the white haired youkai, smirking. Why was he here? Shouldn't his brain be off limits?

Rikuo's world went dark, as he lost consciousness.

* * *

"Just hold on, Kunai. The wounds are deep, but if you relax, and stay awake, you should be fine." Zen, ripped bandages in hand to stop the bleeding and his medical kit open. He wasn't sure what happened. He had been wakened up by a flood of youkai aura, and rushed out here to find Kunai bleeding to death and Rikuo nowhere in sight.  
"Where's...where's Rikuo-dono?" Kunai spoke, managing to even with his injured lungs.  
"I...don't know." Zen admitted, mixing up some herbal remedy to try and stop the bleeding. If it didn't stop, Kunai's lungs would fill with blood and...  
Well, it wasn't a pretty end.

"The youkai, is trying, to kill him and take over the Demons."  
"Stay quiet. You need to rest. You're lungs are in horrible shape. If you keep talking, you'll only make it worse."  
Zen admired the loyalty Kunai had, knowing the feeling himself. The whole Nura Gumi felt the same way, but it was odd to see a youkai caring about a human.

Part human, he reminded himself.

Zen found himself being pushed down by Fear, before the Fear was reined back in. It was a familiar Fear, one that Zen thought he'd never feel again.

Clouds that once blocked the moonlight moved away, coating the whole area in a white glow.  
A black leopard appeared, and a ball of black stood in the middle.  
Sounds of metal came from the sphere, before exploding, covering the area in blue smoke.

"There's one thing you didn't know, Kokatsu. One thing you forgot to count. The one thing that will lead to your death." A single deep voice echoed from the smoke, which covered the entire area.

"Impossible! How did a human cut through my Fear?!" The leopard youkai bounced back a few steps, unsure of what happened.

"I'm not all human." The smoke cleared away, revealing a tall figure. Long, gravity defying hair that was half white and half black stood out the most. Red eyes, well defined chin, blue robes. A familiar sword rested in his hand, raised defensively.

"What have you done with the human? Where is Rikuo? Where is my prey!" The youkai demanded, as it shifted back and forth, unsure of what just happened.

Zen gasped in surprise and shock. The youkai...looked like the Supreme Commander! But how was that possible? Who was this youkai?

...That Fear...It couldn't be. It was impossible.

"If you stand in my way, I'll kill you!" The leopard pounced, easily jumping 8 feet towards his prey, who remained unworried.

_"Kyōka Suigetsu."_ The white haired youkai spoke two words, looking absolutely calm, an air of leadership surrounding him. He almost sounded...amused.

The youkai flew through the stranger, whose body becoming black tendrils of smoke before vanishing completely, as though the stranger was only smoke.

_That...was a Nura family technique!_ Zen had only seen it a few times, but the name was the same, there was no doubting that.  
The leopard stood no chance. The stranger appeared a foot behind the leopard youkai, smoke drifting from his body. With the ease of a practiced swordsmen, the leopard stood no chance.

Leaving him alone with Zen and Kunai.

The stranger was ruthless, calm, and powerful. He moved with the grace of a trained swordsmen, and fought like one too. He turned, before walking towards Zen and Kunai.

Zen panicked. He had never seen the youkai before, he would not be able to stand a chance against the youkai, and he had no idea where Rikuo was. "We're Nura Clan members!" He exclaimed.

Where _was_ Rikuo, anyway?

The youkai leaned down next to Kunai, ignoring Zen's plea, before sheathing his sword.  
Kunai grinned at the sight of the stranger, before speaking. "You make a very good youkai."  
"Stay down, Kunai. I need you to live. You did promise, remember?" A hint of amusement in his voice, as the youkai seemed to find the whole situation funny.  
"Yes, Rikuo-dono."  
"Rikuo?" Zen finally asked, knowing that the chances of Kunai being wrong were slim. But that Nura Fear...  
"When did you wake up, you good-for-nothing?" The youkai scolded, causing Zen to choke in surprise.  
"Rikuo?" He asked again, still in shock.  
"What?" Rikuo raised an eyebrow, the other eye closed, while looking bored and curious at the same time. That was a feat in itself.

"But...that Fear...was a Nura family technique! That means..."  
"Spit it out Zen." Rikuo demanded, annoyance in his voice.  
"Have you heard the story of Rihan Nura?"


	8. The Full Story

**Much of this chapter was written by Dennou Writer. She's helping me improve, so updates will be slower. The plot is starting to pick up now, and I've got a outline now that's quite epic. The next chapter will be more of my writing, so leave any positive or negative (but helpful) comments.**

** The official pairing for this story is now RikuTsura.**

** Bold is Shuu's POV, italics is Rikuo's.**

**I'm going to go back and edit the past chapters, improving on them but keeping the info the same. They will be replaced and you will be notified.**

**Chapter**** 1 has been improved. We're nearing the end of this arc, and on to the next arc!**

* * *

"A story?" at the proposal of the Yakuzen healer, Rikuo couldn't help but arch a doubtful brow, "Really, Zen?"

Said man shifted, doing his best to ignore the look on the other youkai's face. The differences between the one standing before him, who he had taken to be a complete stranger, and the little boy he once met were too many. Other than the same sword and the same carefree look, Zen would have discredited him in a heartbeat. There was also his aura, which was almost overpowering, but right then, it was in some sort of resting state, controlled and collected to the point even Kunai seemed unaffected by it, regardless of his condition; and, exactly like the Supreme Commander's, his use of _Kyouka Suigetsu_ was enough to make the herbs specialist double-take – those were other signs for that being Rikuo Nishimura (and that was without the look-alike hair). But something else was niggling at Zen – a small of part of him wanted all of that to be true.

That the 2nd heir had returned to them.

But... how? Where had he been? Why had it been so long? There were so many questions in his head he sometimes lost his own trail of thoughts. Nevertheless, he had to leave them for later, when he was finished.  
"Just hear me out." The lavender-haired one requested impatiently, earning an eyebrow rise from the youkai.

"Okay..."

Satisfied, Zen started, ready to catch every single reaction from the younger one, "So, about 10 years ago, the 1st heir was killed. Everyone mourned and searched for years for the killer. How it happened, we'll never know. He was Rihan Nura, the son of Nurarihyon..."

Without batting an eye, the brown-haired young man took over. "And his son, Rikuo Nura, was kidnapped on the same night, when he was 5 years old."

"W-What?" after a while in silence, Zen finally spoke, his mouth hanging open from surprise. There was no way human Rikuo could know that. He couldn't get any of the Nura youkai to admit that (weakness and all), and Rikuo never spoke to them anyway. "Did someone tell you? Did you ask..."

"No." he answered simply, "I know about that… 'cause I am Rikuo Nura."

Another awkwardly silent moment followed. Then Zen burst into laughter, hiding the suspicious feeling that took place in his guts. He remembered walking around with the little Rikuo in the mountains, lecturing the would-be heir about what (not) to eat and do while the playful youngster would go on and on about useless things, like school or like how he always successfully managed to catch his attendants into his home-made traps with the lower Ayakashi. Back then, the herbalist was one of the closest people to him, and he loved him as the adorable otouto he was. Still, he couldn't help but feel a certain disappointment towards the boy, exactly because of that excessive adorableness of his, which had always seemed to be on the way of his success as the third head. Of course, Rikuo was still too young and his human nature, which was ¾ of him, did have a lot more impact on him than his youkai part, so his weak and bratty form had seemed to be still not ready to show signs of becoming a leader, but that didn't seem to add up anything to his side. In fact, it only seemed to be the main factor against him. After all, as witnessed by Nurarihyon, his late wife, two of his subordinates and a few humans, Nura Rihan had started using his Fear in a much younger age than Rikuo. While Rikuo hadn't even shown if he had or not the ability to awaken his Ayakashi side at five years of age, Rihan had already given the first demonstration of his powers when he was just a few months old. For that reason, and adding it to the fact Rihan and his wife, Nura Wakana, had raised Rikuo planning on keeping him the farthest they could from the bloody side of the youkai world, the branch families looked down on him as well, and rooted for another person to become the next head instead of him. As for Rikuo himself, no matter how familiar he was with Ayakashi, he also seemed to favor the human life much more. With all of that, plus the many inconveniences that happened together with Rihan's death, it turned out Rikuo ended up never actually becoming his father's successor after all.

It was as if everything was fated to go wrong.

Everything started to become a real mess after that, but Zen was one of the people that couldn't care less about anything else, as long as Rikuo could be returned – if there was any possibility of him returning from wherever he was. In any case, the bird Ayakashi preferred to consider any possibility that not him being dead as well. He was just an innocent little child – he deserved anything but what was going on, let alone to lose his life in the midst of that chaos.

It wasn't fair.

By the end of Zen's little fit, which calmed down slowly (because of the many negative thoughts and memories brought back to him), Rikuo smirked knowingly, "Okay, so maybe I'll have to make you believe in me. Let's see... I'm the leader of the Deathside Demons. My 2nd in command is Fujimoto and my 3rd is Yasuo. I took over for Haraguchi when he was arrested and tried for murder. Kunai became my bodyguard in exchange of saving his life. My birthday is September 23rd, and my weapon of choice is Tora-Oni. Does that add anything up?"

With a look of realization, Zen understood how little he knew about that Nishimura. "September 23rd", he repeated. That was the same as Rikuo Nura. At least he had that going for him.

"It's him, Zen-san. There's no point arguing that." Zen decided to take Kunai's word on this. Kunai would be able to tell the difference between his protectee and a fake, so Zen could at least trust that that was Rikuo Nishimura without doubts. But still, the chance of Nishimura and Nura being the same person were slim, yet little possibility was all enough for Zen. But what could only Rikuo Nura know?

"Alright. So you're Nishimura. I'll trust Kunai on this. But, if you really are Rikuo Nishimura and Rikuo Nura, tell me something only the 2nd heir would know."

The youkai remained silent, before speaking, a glint in his eye. "Remember the first time we met?" At his own question, Rikuo himself had to stop and think for a few minutes. Maybe he should have mentioned other things of some part of his life, but not one from so early, such as a first meeting with an old companion – rather, he was thinking it could be something that had had more impact on him or the household. Nevertheless, he scanned his memory after any possible piece of that day, until something resurfaced.

_He was running._

_Filling the Nura main house's outermost corridors with laughter, the very young Rikuo ran gleefully, trying not to slip onto his tabi. The feeling he had at the moment seemed to be really good – it was the genuine joy that only childhood could give and the thrilling feeling of not wanting to be caught as he escaped through the maze that was his home._

But, as much as he was having so much fun, who was he running away from and why? That little piece of information didn't seem to register in his mind, no matter how hard he tried. All there was to that moment was pure content for being way ahead of whoever he was playing with.

Until...

_"Whoa!" the moment the small boy looked behind to see he was still in advantage, he heard someone yelp in front of him._ _Turning around, his rather puffy face ended up hitting something hard, but he was sure a wall was not supposed to be there, so he had most likely dumped into someone. Falling onto his bottom because of the impact, he immediately put a hand on his sore forehead. "Hum... are you okay?" he heard whoever he had collided with ask. By the voice, it was a grown man – he didn't recall ever meeting before. He looked up, finding out said man was much taller than he had thought – probably he was as tall as his father. He had short spiky hair and eyes that matched their color, which seemed to be a funny shade of purple; his clothes were simple and loose, but his image seemed rather authoritative as he kept his posture; his look, even though that had concern, also had a bit of annoyance in them, and in the middle of his forehead was what seemed to be a mark made by facial expressions – most likely an effect of frowning a lot._

_Rikuo's conclusion of the stranger was automatic – whoever that was, he was scary, but somewhat cool._

_"Oi, I asked you if you're okay." The man said, getting on one knee to see the reckless one's wound better and to get his attention, "Can you hear m...? Wait, you..." narrowing his already narrow eyes, the muscular man examined him better, as if he was trying to recognize him from some time they had seen each other before. "Are you... Nidaime's son?"_

_Snapping out of his admiring trance towards the unknown Ayakashi, Rikuo found in his last question an opportunity to get to know him. Smiling proudly at himself, he got on his feet, pointing a finger at his own chest, "I–"_

_"Zen!" a third voice was heard, trailing Rikuo off but still helping him find out what the name of the "cool guy" was. And, as the one the voice belonged to came to sight, there couldn't have been a brighter grin on his childish face._

_"Otou-san~!" he threw his arms up as he ran to the arms of the amber-eyed leader, who received him welcomingly._

_"So this really is your son." The so-called "Zen" stated the obvious._

_"Resembles Wakana a lot, doesn't he?" Rihan gave him one of his winks with a smirk while patting his child's head._

_"H-Hey, that hurts, Otou-san...!"_

_Sweat-dropping, the other youkai nodded, already having a bad impression of how much the boy seemed to have taken after his human mother. No wonder the elders had so many problems accepting him as their leader._

_"Say, can I call you 'Zen-kun'?" he heard the boy ask, his voice a bit muffled by his father's green yukata._

_"Kun"...? Why was he asking to address him with a lower honorific? Was it that he could feel like he was in a higher position or something like that? Zen kept questioning himself about it, but soon dropped the subject and let the kid do as he wished. From what he observed, even if he said no, the little devil would still want to insist._

_"What are you to Otou-san, Zen-kun?" he asked, this time matter-of-factly._

_Before the bird Ayakashi could answer, Rihan did it for him, "He's the head of one of the branch families. The Yakushi clan is under his command."_

_"Eeeh~? That sounds so cool~!" chocolate eyes gleamed in admiration, "What do you guys do~?"_

_"Huh... we specialize in medicine." At the new piece of information, Rikuo seemed to be confused, until he clarified it in an understandable way for such a young child, "We are like doctors. Our job is to cure the wounded."_

_Seemingly surprised that the clan had a special household only for healers, the chocolate-haired one seemed to have an even better impression of Zen. The other heads he had met were all specifically fighters, and, as much as he found that thrilling, he also pretty much wished that someone different came up. That was also the reason why he was quite a bit surprised to find out what kind of Ayakashi he was and that he actually had wings. He was a little disappointed to know said wings weren't made to fly, mostly because he had wanted to try getting a ride from him, but his disappointment soon became amazement again when he was told his wings were made of shiny feathers that consisted in a substance that, when mixed with Sake, created a deadly poison. By the end of the little conversation, Rikuo was musing something along the lines of, "Wah, Zen-kun's wings seem awesome..."_

_"Yeah, just not the part that they are slowly killing me." Zen muttered to himself, and only Rihan could hear. Little did the boy know that, even when not mixed with Sake, the bird youkai's feathers were still poisonous, only didn't kill immediately. Because of that, his lifespan was fated to be short as his health became poorer within time, just like it had happened with his father and grandfather, who didn't walk on that world any more._

_"Ne, ne, Zen-kun." Rikuo asked, breaking the few seconds of silence among the three of them, "Can we play together today?"_

_"Haa?" with an arched brow, the one in question wondered if the bratty devil was just joking._

_"Let's play in the yard! I've got plenty of youkai traps there!" he invited enthusiastically, showing he actually meant what was being said._

_"Sorry, Rikuo." Rihan smiled apologetically, "But we have an important Soukai coming up soon. Besides, it's getting late."_

_"I couldn't agree more, Rihan-sama." As a fourth voice was heard coming closer, this time, belonging to a female, Rikuo felt a shiver go up his spine with a feeling he knew he really disliked – getting caught._

_"Waaah?!" as he let out a yelp of surprise, he tried to hide from whoever was rounding the corner inside his father's yukata, earning a warm laugh from him and an odd look from Zen._

_"Come, Rikuo-sama." The unknown woman, who sounded really young, – about ten to thirteen years of age – called him softly, walking closer. "It's bath time."_

_"Nooo~! I don't wanna~!" he said stubbornly, not wanting to look at the one who wanted to take him away. For some reason, he felt that if he looked at her, he would end up having to surrender._

_So that was the person he had been running away from. For some reason, he now felt curious to remember more, for he didn't seem to recall anything about having a young girl as an attendee._

_"But you have to." Rihan continued to laugh as he held his son in his strong arms to prevent him from escaping, "And so you will."_

_"Otou-san is a traitor!" he complained as he was lifted from his "hiding spot" and held right in front of the one that was supposed to pick him up for bath. Crossing his arms childishly, he pouted and glared the floor, still refusing to face the young woman as she extended her own arms to envelope him into her own hold. And, as soon as she did so, he was welcomed by comfortable soft and coldness of a skinny and fragile body, completely contrasting his father's warm and muscular feeling. No, it not only contrasted his father's embrace – that was a totally different experience, as if it was a redefinition of being carried by someone. Whenever he tried to find words in his head to describe it, he couldn't use any one better than "unique". But who gave off that overwhelming feeling?_

_He couldn't remember._

_Her face, Rikuo decided within himself as he urged his mind to go on faster with the flashback, he needed to know if he had looked at her face, said her name, anything of the sort, so maybe then he could associate her with her name. Whatever was the reason why he was so curious about her, which was most likely why she was the only person in that memory he didn't quite know who it was, he couldn't decide, but he would leave that for later. Now, all he wanted was to remember who that was, no matter what. Somehow, just like Zen and his father, he had the presentiment she had been someone important to him._

_"Not fair..." his young self kept pouting as he was carried back to his room, staring at a fair amount of beautiful raven hair that shone in the sunset lights, which were now a reddish pink. His head was resting on her shoulder, and his voice was muffled by the white fabrics of her kimono, "I was talking to Otou-san and Zen-kun... the game wasn't on anymore..." he insisted, but somehow, he now felt soothed to the point he didn't even care anymore that he had lost. It was as if he had taken some sort of tranquilizer, and now the despicable grudge of defeat was gone._

_Maybe... that was her smell?_

_"Oh, but time was still running, regardless of our little 'game'." Was the answer from the unknown girl. As she spoke, she patted his head comfortably, and he couldn't help but notice two things – one of them was that her hands seemed to be much smaller and kinder than his father's and the other was that, unlike him, she wasn't the slightest bits sweaty or tired, which meant that, while he was running away from her and thinking she was trying to catch up like crazy, she was actually walking calmly to him. That pretty much made him feel like an idiot at the same time he felt guilty for ruining her once perfectly white and blue furisode with dirt and sweat, even though she didn't seem to mind it at all (or else, she wouldn't even have taken him in her arms in first place)._

_Arriving at their destination, he heard her open the shouji doors of his room as he stared at the disappearing sun. As she put him on the floor to get him some clean clothes, he kept gazing at the darkening sky, only looking behind when he heard her cheerfully calling him. When he turned his head around, he could only see one thing in the darkness of his room._

_White._

_That was the first thing that registered in the field of vision of his big round eyes, together with a sisterly smile, which bore many things – cuteness, kindness, softness... the list seemed to be rather long. He couldn't quite see her eyes since her ebony bangs were covering them, but he did catch the golden glint in them and how big they were. As he got up to hold her hand and follow her to the mansion's Onsen, he returned her cheerful expression with his own tomboyish one._

_She was... pretty._

* * *

As the flashback ended and he could remember no more of that day, frustration hit him harder than it should, causing him to become a little annoyed with himself – he still couldn't remember her name. He wanted to ask Zen about her, because if she was really important, she was probably someone he knew as well. But first, he continued, "I was on Oyaji's lap... and I was asking a lot of stuff about you. For some reason, I found you so cool and all... but someone came and I had to leave..." Although it was spoken with less enthusiasm than he remembered it, there was no doubting that this was true. The only other person to have heard that conversation was dead and Zen had never heard of a youkai who could steal memories. That was Rikuo Nishimura. The Fears matched, the looks matched (a little), the knowledge matched.

Rikuo Nishimura... was really Rikuo Nura.

"Zen...?" Rikuo called, as if trying to get the man back to reality. And he was about to ask about the young brunette he couldn't recall the name, when his companion snapped back into his senses.

_This was why the Shodaisho was so protective and lenient with Rikuo. He suspected the truth from the start!- _

The Kashimoto slowly broke into a happy laughter, soon becoming loud and obnoxious, regardless of his poor lungs, "We're celebrating tonight! I'm ordering a crap load of sake! Zen brings home the Sandaime! What a story!"

"No." Rikuo interrupted the moment, blunt and seriously.

"'No'?! W-What do you mean 'no'?! The Nura Clan has to know! Do you know what kind of party that'll be?!"

"No, you can't tell the clan yet. How are you going to prove I'm the 2nd heir?"

"What nonsense are you blathering about now?!"

"Listen to me! My day side doesn't remember any of this. And I'm almost completely sure that until he accepts who I am, he won't. Telling the Nura clan will only delay that."

"'Day side'? But, if you stay like this..."

"I can't." the white-haired one sighed, "I can only take this form at night. Blame my humanity for that. As soon as dawn breaks, I'll turn back into my Day self and forget this happened."

He could only be a like that at night? Was that because he was only ¼ Ayakashi? But then, how could the famous Youkai Clan be run by someone who could only actually become Youkai at ¼ of the day? There was no way that could float with the elders.

"Argh!" Zen scratched his head in slight irritation and confusion, "This is too much. Tell me the whole story, from the start. I want to know what happened on that night."

"You see... from the pieces of my memories I could put together, I believe a few members of some sort of 'Anti-Nura group' came together to kill my father. They got a youkai to look like someone he knew. She killed him in front of my eyes." He paused here, seething at the memory. If he had awoken that night, he might have been able to fight back a little bit, delay them enough for back-up to arrive...

...and save his father's life.

But, sadly, it seemed he was still too young to even have notion of what had happened at the time it was happening. He was too young – all he remembered to have felt back there was confusion and fear. He didn't know what was going on – he actually barely even had a vague idea of what death was, but he had never thought of the possibility of his father dying, let alone being murdered right in front of him. So from the moment he saw the other youkai approaching him with a blade to the one he saw his father for one last time before he was gone, all he knew was that he was scared and confused for not knowing what was happening and why.

_"Otou-san…?" the little Rikuo called absently, his huge eyes scanning the fallen form of his father curiously. He lay there, on the ground, after yelling for him to run away for whatever reason. Yet his father wouldn't answer. With his hair covering his face and a red liquid coming out of his belly uncontrollably, Rihan stood there, in a rather odd position, as if he was a puppet that had been dropped and couldn't stand without his puppeteer. Frozen, the poor boy started to feel his stomach move uncomfortably. What was his father doing? If that was a prank, it definitely wasn't funny. But, if something serious was actually happening, what was it?_

_And, more important, who were those strange people standing next to him?_

_"What should we do with the brat?" one of said people asked, focusing a malicious glare at Rikuo, making him wish he remained silent and motionless._

_"Look at the weak thing. Not even killing his father could bring out his true self." Another one commented dismissively, as if what it was saying was no big deal, "He'll never be fit to run the Nura Clan. What a worthless little shit. Let's just dispose of him."_

_"Dispose"? What were they talking about? What were they going to do with him? As much as he didn't know, there was one thing he was certain of – they were up to no good._

_As mischievous and cursed-looking forms began to move within the shadows of the night, the main house's beautiful Yamabuki garden began to fall apart, replaced by threatening darkness. In a panicky trial of escape, he dashed away to the direction of the main house, but since he was completely disoriented, he ended up reaching the gates instead. Exit-less, he thought the quickest way of getting help was to run out the streets and scream, and so he did. But, much to his despair, it didn't take much for him to trip and fall._

And then everything went black.

"It was easy catching me. I was left injured on the streets, but I was able to crawl to the doorstep of the nearest house. I still don't know why they didn't kill me. Maybe they thought that would be enough for me to die on the spot after some minutes... I'll probably never find out." Rikuo said meekly, "Then, I spent the next two years living with a brother who cared about me, a mom who tried, and a stupid dad."

* * *

**"I wanna try."**

**At the simple confession from the little one, his stepbrother's sigh echoed through their school's dojo, dropping the practice pose. The boy had been watching his unrelated kin since he had started practicing kendou at school some months ago. He'd just come without being invited after classes were over to see him practice, even after he was told he could go home ahead. It was quite annoying how the girls usually came to him (since he was young and cute) and how his brother constantly had to inform everyone they weren't related by blood and lie about how he had been adopted by his family when asked about it. In addition, the curious and admiring looks on his face were starting to get on said kin's nerves. "Why do you want to play with a bokken?"**

**"It seems cool." The nine-year-old honestly said, able to smile enthusiastically at his own words, "I used to see my Otou-san and Ojii-chan doing this kind of stuff, and Shuu-nii-chan always seems so awesome doing it. I wanna be like that too!"**

**"You mean the 'youkai' ones?" Shuu asked with a tone of disdain and an unimpressed frown, "Heh, were they kendo teachers or something? No, more important, have you ever wielded one of these?"**  
**Rikuo shook his head. Face-palming, Shuu just decided to give him directions to the shed, where he could find plenty of bokken separated to be used by the newcomers. Since the chocolate-haired boy's vision and reasons to try kendo were shallow, maybe if he tried seeing how difficult the real thing was, he'd drop the idea and leave him alone.**

**"Jeesh..." Shuu thought while grimacing at the running boy, "I wish he'd stop with all that Nura crap. Where's he coming up with this stuff, anyway?"**

**Rikuo was weird. He had showed up with grave injuries on their doorstep and hadn't left since. Since he couldn't remember clearly what had happened to him at the night of his father's death and would always sputter nonsense about coming from a Youkai Clan, his saviors, who were now his foster parents, refused to return him to his real family, whoever they were, because it was more than clear the way they had been raising him was no good. And whether the boy was just making up stuff from his imagination to help him overcome a possible trauma or was merely a little autistic they didn't know, but they had decided to progress slowly with his recover, and so that was left as one of the last priorities. For that reason, Shuu was stuck taking care of the little freak like a real brother, but he was sure he wouldn't mind it if said freak came to his senses and outgrew the creepy stuff he talked about – because, if one ignored that, he was just an adorable ordinary child. Sadly, so far, he seemed to be a lost cause, even after the many sections of therapy he had been going to for a year or so.**

**Rikuo returned, the bokken in hand.**

**"You're pretty good with that thing." Shuu lied lamely, "Hey, let's make a deal, okay? If you can beat me, you may be able to have classes here. I'm just a kouhai after all, so it should only take the basics for us to have a fair fight. We can measure if you have any talent that way. What do you say?"**

**"Okay!" Rikuo enthusiastically said, making his brother a bit sorry for him. Of course the proposal was meant to make him stop coming to the dojo and being such a bother – after all, even though Shuu was really a mere kouhai and still only knew the basics, Rikuo had never even touched a bokken before. The older one felt a little bad for cheating like that, but he didn't seem to have any other choice. What helped him not feel so guilty for tricking a young child was the innocent thought he just wanted to make his stepbrother a bit embarrassed, then he would mind his own business.**

**"Ready?" Rikuo nodded at Shuu's question, the cheerful look in his eyes replaced with concentration as he tried to mirror the stepbrother's stance. "Three... two... Go!" Making the first move, Shuu used a simple kata as a first attack, which Rikuo dodged. Trying not to glare the nine-year-old, he remembered how the little boy had good reflexes and quick reasoning. Even living in a world of his own, his brother had always exceeded in pretty much everything. He was also quite the centered and calm one, and was always ready to help anyone with anything. That also annoyed him quite a bit about his little brother.**

**Minding his speed and strength this time, Shuu tried again to reach the brunet with a kata, but he dodged it yet again. Fearing some people could be starting to stare at them, he started to feel the need to not go so easy on the little one, but pushed back the urge to slam the bokken onto his thick head. Finally, Shuu gave his first step forward, trying to surprise Rikuo with an even quicker approach. This time, he wouldn't have enough space to dodge, and even if he backed up, he would still be within the area of the attack – in other words, he had to block. Shuu was sure he wouldn't be able to, but he was proved wrong as the chocolate-eyed child firmly held his bokken in front of him, preventing the maneuver. By then, Shuu got carried away being impressed with the fast thinking of the boy, and was defeated with a simple comeback before he could have noticed.**

**When he snapped back from his thoughts, the black-haired youngster found himself staring straight at the tip of Rikuo's bokken.**

**"I won." At the declaration and the boy's smile, which was something quite rare to see, Shuu couldn't help but frown.**

**"Of course you did. I let you." He half-lied boringly, hiding his frustration. "That was just a little test. I wanted to see until what point I could take easy on you. Now, we can start a real match."**  
**Staring at him for a few seconds, Rikuo seemed to have become slightly annoyed by the fact he wasn't acknowledged. But, nevertheless, he nodded understandingly, mirroring his brother's pose again. And, this time, he was the one who counted.**

**It happened in a second – Shuu swore the boy changed.**

**The moment he said "go", Rikuo launched forward immediately. He seemed to have understood a little too quickly that if he wanted to win, he couldn't just dodge and block as he let his brother do the movements first for him to see – he needed to surprise him. And surprise him he did as he threw himself at his direction, almost actually hitting him, but he had been able to move away in the last second. Turning around abruptly, the blue-eyed one tried to also do a surprise attack by hitting Rikuo slightly on the arm with his bokken while he didn't have time to turn around, but he was able to block it without doing so. Pushing back the pre-teen's weapon, Rikuo turned around with his feet snapping onto the ground, which caught the attention of some people. Another thing that made people realize the two of them were having a little private match that wasn't actual practice was how forcefully and continuously Rikuo was hitting his stepbrother's bokken with a few repetitive kata he had learned by watching him every day, which was making the sound of colliding wood echo through the whole place.**

**"O-Oi, Rikuo..." Shuu tried to speak over the noise, noticing they were receiving increasing attention, "Calm down, this is nothing to be taken seriousl–" he, however, was not able to finish his statement, for he realized that, in a blink of eye, his mouth was almost being touched by Rikuo's bokken. After that, everything was silent for a moment, then the dojo exploded in surprised gasps, whispers and cheers for the little nine-year-old, who seemed to be rather talented. And, while everyone motioned to congratulate the winner, Shuu stood there, in the same spot, motionless like a statue, until he slowly raised a hand to touch his throat. He felt a knot in there, but it wasn't something like a knot from being interrupted and having to "swallow" his words.**

**It was from pure fright.**

**Just who was that boy? Was he the same clueless being that would forget to tie his shoes and trip by the doorstep while leaving for school? He seemed far too different back there – almost menacing, as if he really intended to kill him in case they had been less than "friends". Could it be that he really...?**

**No.**

**No, no, no. Shuu knew he was thinking nonsense. He could be talented in pretty much everything, but that didn't mean he had any sorts of "super powers", let alone that his bullshit about youkai was true. Rikuo really did catch him by surprise that time, but that was just because he got carried away since he was impressed with his velocity and force. After all, in his age, that was quite a bit abnormal. Maybe, he thought in defeat, he really did have what it took to practice kendou after all. With that, Shuu scratched the back of his neck, going to save his younger brother from the exaggerated attention he was receiving and seemed not to deal so well with.**

**Little did he know he had missed the fact that, back then, the boy's once innocent chocolate eyes flashed a dangerous crimson.**

* * *

"Eh?! No way!" Zen's eyes widened, "You had your first experience with your Fear back then?!"  
"Exactly." Rikuo nodded, closing his eyes as the story reached its worst part, "And, I think because of that the youkai that had tried to assassinate me back then were able to find me. Shuu-nii-san and his parents died in a fire caused by a youkai that had come to finish the job and make sure that time I would die for good."

* * *

_It was all a living hell._

_For the first time in his life, Nura Rikuo's youkai part stood on the outside world. His "other side's" family's destroyed house burned behind him, with them lying lifelessly inside while said side himself was asleep, knocked out by horrors that had occurred earlier. The corpse of the youkai he had just unintentionally killed by suffocating him with his youki lay on the ground beneath him, quickly decomposing as the Sun seemed to be coming soon. He had been trying to make the little insect spit out some information about him, and it was working quite well until a certain point – he now knew the truth behind what had happened the day his father was murdered and that now they were after him for obvious reasons. But the youkai was much weaker than he looked, and, after being captured by his youki, he only resisted until the first time the pressure was tightened around him a little bit._

_The young white-haired boy sighed, looking behind him and lamenting not being able to save those people and paying back the huge debt he had with them for saving his live. Trying to regain his strength to go on, he thought back of his real home. He was Rikuo Nura. He needed to return to the Nura clan and tell them about the killers of the 1st heir. Until his Day side awoke and fought him for the control of taking over, he would make his way towards the clan's headquarters. He would gather everyone, and go after his father's murderers until they were found._

_They would not get away with killing his father._

_Fire trucks were heading this way, and would only complicate matters. What also didn't make anything better was that he had a long way to go, and traveling by the sun would be difficult. Having Nurarihyon's blood made him quite powerful in comparison to his other half, but the sun was draining to every youkai. He would have to conserve strength, and stick to the shadows._

_The sun rose from beneath the horizon, sending it's warm light over the earth. As soon as the sun hit him, he felt his power going away, as if slipping through his fingers. He expected that, but, it didn't stop. "What?! I can't hold this form during the day?!" His Fear drained from him, his hair shortening. "I can't! Not now!"_  
_But nothing he did was of any use – he was banished back into the depths of his human self's conscience, and the last thing he saw was the rising sun._

* * *

"I regained my Nura memories, so when the cops arrived, I tried to escape. But dawn broke, and I found myself back as an innocent and weak human who managed to survive a house fire. The police didn't know who I was and I didn't quite know how to explain where I had come from, so I was put into foster, and spent the next years being shuffled like unwanted family antiques. I think you can tell that, because of all this, my hatred of youkai grew very quickly." Rikuo laughed bitterly, "After some years, I was left with a foster in the town called Hiroshi, who was too stupid to realize what I was doing during the night. I was planning to strike out on my own, so I was saving up. And one day..."

* * *

_"Haraguchi-sama! Please, wait!" Fujimoto called desperately after the leader, who had his back facing her, "It is most likely a trap!"_

_"I don't care, Fujimoto. I won't let those people get away with trespassing into my turf and kidnapping my members!" was what silenced Fujimoto, who saw the fire burning in her superior's eyes. She nodded, before following after him. The two of them soon reached the place that, supposedly, their kidnapped comrades were at – a dark and abandoned warehouse._

_That morning, the Demons had received a rather ironic invitation of an enemy gang, asking them to come have a match. As motivation, it was obvious they had to do something drastic, and so they did, by capturing some of the weakest members and using them as hostages._

_Big mistake – they were messing around with the wrong people._

_Haraguchi broke down the door with Fujimoto next to him, ready to fight. But, much to their surprise, what they found out was that the inside was completely empty... except for many men moaning and twisting in agony as they messily lay everywhere on the wooden floor and the one lone figure, standing over something, which turned out to be the kidnapped members of the Demons._

_"Identify yourself!" sensing danger, both Fujimoto and Haraguchi lunged forward to attack as they demanded simultaneously, fearing the figure was going to do something against the fallen members._  
_"Wait! Wait, wait, wait!" The figure jumped back in surprise, dodging both of their "shoot-to-injure" attacks with ease. Fujimoto and Haraguchi stood next to each other, unsure of what to expect. The bound figures were unconscious, but fine. The ropes were sliced clean through. "I didn't kill any of them! They challenged me, so I had to indulge them! That's all!"_

_"What? We're not members of their gang, so who cares about them?" Fujimoto arched a brow, "We are here for the ones that were tied."_

_"Really?" The figure didn't seem to be expecting that. "Uh, I guess I'll be going then."_  
_"What gang are you affiliated with?" Haraguchi asked, sounding more like a command. How did that person take out the 20 or so people lying around without killing any of them? He was short and thin – quite small. Maybe he was a teenager? That made it even crazier that he seemed to have defeated all those men lying around lamely._

_And Haraguchi liked that idea._

_"None." Was the perfect answer._

_"Is that so?" Haraguchi smirked, "Then, I want to propose you something."_


	9. History is Past, Present is Future

**Sorry about the wait. I can't believe it's been a month already, and a little longer. At least I make up for it with this long chapter, at over 10,000 words. It's mostly flashbacks, but the next chapter is chocked full of action to make up for it.**

**And again, thanks to Dennou for editing/betaing, and for providing the OVA, which only proved to be a distraction...**

**If you started reading this before chapter 8 was released, you may want to go back and reread the last 7 chapters, as they have been updated/edited to fit in better with the general plot. Thanks to Dennou, the whole plot of this story has been rearranged.**

**And the raw for 210 is out. I can't believe I have to say goodbye to Nura so soon. I wonder if Viz will release the new chapter before the scanlators do...**

**And Happy New Year! Since I won't see you until then...**

* * *

Tsurara was perturbed and rather frustrated, but she wasn't alone with her feelings. This matched the feelings of the Nura-Gumi members in general, and the entire mood of the house ever since the mostly human and his Youkai bodyguard showed up a few days ago. Their arrival banished the once previous silence that haunted the house, something many youkai doubted would ever happen. Youkai gossiped about rumors, stories, and questions that no one dared ask, for fear of facing Rikuo or Kunai's wrath. Because of that, their shared bedroom became firmly off limits, and Rikuo proved his throwing arm to the smaller Youkai who dared to trespass. But even with some Kumi members fearing him andknowing the two of them weren't staying for long, she could tell the youkai of the house were slowly becoming used to the human, and vice-versa. Rikuo had a routine, and the youkai of the house had a routine. Slowly, the two were melting together.

Rikuo also wouldn't admit it, but he was getting used to them as well. It was little things that convinced her of this. Rikuo spent less time hiding from the youkai in the house. Like when Rikuo _asked_ _her_ to accompany him on an errand. And it was an unusual one at that.

* * *

_"Ano...Tsurara."_

_She turned around sharply, ready to meet the source of the unknown voice that had called her so disrespectfully while managing not to let the load of dry laundry in her hands fall. Anyone that had dared to call her by her first name and no honorifics without having proper intimacy with her usually suffered of frostbite, so it was quite the daring move._

_She hadn't expected it to be a properly dressed and wide awake Rikuo, lacking a certain reptilian by his side. Her partially asleep brain tried to comprehend the strangeness of the situation. Even though she was up this early almost every morning, it still took awhile for the fog to clear._

_Rikuo hadn't called her "youkai". Even though he should have used "Yuki Onna", "san", or whatever other better forms, he was actually trying to be polite, and she was happy with the little step he had taken in the right direction. Next time, though, she wouldn't be as easy-going, but she would let it slide._

_Once._

_"Hai, Rikuo-kun?" She tilted her head in wonder of what he could possibly want, especially so early in the morning. She had never seen Rikuo up this early before, and the Kumi members were more than happy to let him sleep, wanting to spend as much time away from the human._

_"I have an errand to run, and I need someone to come with me." Rikuo didn't make eye contact, choosing to pay more attention to the garden, the indignation apparent on his face._

_She blinked in surprise. Rikuo...was asking for a Nura member, specifically her, to go with him? Outside? Willingly?_

_"E-Eh? Ah, okay, I think... as soon as I finish this laundry." She stuttered slightly. Obviously, when she was done, she would have a huge list of other chores waiting for her, but maybe her mistress could have someone fill in for the day. After all, she didn't want to turn the boy down. The Soudaishou would be glad he was asking a favor to someone for a change, and this was more important than her chores for today._

_But something bothered her. Why wasn't Kunai with him? She wasn't sure if Kunai didn't trust the Nura youkai, or if he didn't trust his master to behave himself. Either way, Kunai only left Rikuo alone if he was ordered to._

_"I'll be waiting at the gate." With that said, Rikuo turned quickly, disappearing before she could ask._

_She found Rikuo pacing back and forth in front of the main gate, anxiously waiting. She had taken on her human appearance, choosing something more common for her clothing. A white blouse with a light yellow sweater over it and a blue skirt suited her needs for the day, as well as her favorite scarf to compliment the design._

_Rikuo had barely more than glanced at her, before setting off towards the main part of the city with her following behind. Trying to keep up with his speed, she found it surprising that while he was a little bit shorter than her, he was still able to outpace her quite easily._

_Her silence only lasted a minute, before she tried to start a conversation, the odd silence getting to her. "Rikuo-kun, you still haven't told me where we are going. And what would you need so early without Kunai?"_

_"The person I'm visiting and him don't...get along. It's better if Kunai stays out of this. I'd like to be back before he wakes up though, or I won't hear the end of it."_

_"You still haven't answered the question. Where exactly are we going then? "_  
_"We're going to get something for Kunai." Rikuo sternly said, making it clear by his tone that was the last question he was going to answer on the topic._

_Tsurara sighed, before catching up to the human, doing her best to match his pace. Rikuo seemed have a lot on his mind, so she respected his need for silence._

_He seemed on edge throughout the walk, as Tsurara saw him reach for Tora-Oni's hidden sheath more than once. His nervousness even caught onto her, and soon she found herself on edge as well, glancing behind her at random intervals. Was Rikuo expecting being attacked? If that was really so, and considering it was still daytime, the place they were going was more dangerous than she could have imagined._  
_Was it Demon related?_  
_But, Kunai would be the better choice as a bodyguard, as he had experience and knew Rikuo better as the Demon Leader. She was powerful, yes, but Ao or Kuro would be a better choice if Rikuo expected to have a full on attack. She started to pay more attention to the surroundings, remembering that she was his bodyguard for now, and she would have to fight if necessary._

_Maybe she could use this little outing to learn more about the mysterious human, and answer some of the questions that no one dared ask._

_Some time passed in silence, Rikuo leading the way at full speed, stopping every so often to get his bearings, then backtracking a few minutes. He did this enough times to confuse even Tsurara, and no doubt anyone following them, if there was such a person._

_Once or twice he paused, his hand going to his sheath, before smirking and continuing on as though nothing was wrong._

_The city slowly turned into suburban, and they arrived at a small and out-of-the-way store. The building was tucked away in an alley that Tsurara would have missed if Rikuo hadn't steered towards it._

_It was dreary from the outside, and had no signs signifying what the store carried. Only a small, blackened OPEN sign sat on the door._

_The windows were pitch black, preventing anyone from looking in._  
_He paused in front of the door, and checked to make sure no one was around. The alley was empty of people, and Rikuo didn't hesitate this time to pull out Tora-Oni's sheath while saying lowly and clearly, "When we enter, go to the right as far as you can and duck."_

_She stared at him, wondering what he was trying to pull. Was this some sort of joke to embarrass her? She didn't see any hints of humor in his face, so she nodded, even though she had no idea of what to expect. Hopefully, she wouldn't regret it._

_Rikuo straightened up, putting on his familiar air of cockiness, before pushing the door open._  
_They both entered the store, an antique bell above the door announcing their entrance with a loud jangle. When the sound of the jangle stopped, the place became eerily silent, other than the 20 running desktop fans situated around._

_It was an odd sight. The walls were blank and grey, the fans were covered in dust, as though they had never been moved. Piles of boxes sat on both sides of the entrance, limiting the room you could move upon entering. What kind of place was this? A fan store? What did Rikuo want from this place?_

_Rikuo remained alert and firm in his stance in the center of the doorway, his hand ready on Tora-Oni's hilt. Meanwhile, Tsurara obediently did as she was told, sliding as far to the right as possible, before crouching down, a look of suspicion on her face, directed at Rikuo._

_He glanced up to the corner of the room, a smirk on his face, before leaning forward in preparation._

_Suddenly, something flew at them from the darkness of the back of the store, reflecting light as it moved at high speed. Rikuo sliced it upwards in a rare display of skill, reflecting and destroying the thrown item, the pieces flying to the left and right before sinking into empty boxes, which looked as if they had been placed there on purpose. The pieces of the item flew over Tsurara's head, making her realize why Rikuo had told her to duck. If she had been standing without knowledge of what was coming, there was no way she would have the reflexes to dodge the flying projectile. Rikuo had been expecting it, and planned accordingly._

_Tsurara couldn't help but get up to seewhat had happened. Upon inspection, she understood what had been thrown at Rikuo was a knife, aimed to kill._

_She saw Rikuo sheath his sword, concluding the the danger was apparently over. Looking behind him, she could easily spot the knife marks in the wood behind him. Whoever was there before obviously wasn't as prepared as Rikuo was. The wood was stained dark, upping the danger level._

_"Ist jemand am Leben da draußen?" A feminine voice called from the back, followed by loud crashes._

_Tsurara's face wracked with confusion, trying to understand what she said, or even what language the mysterious voice was speaking. It almost sounded...jokingly, if you could understand what she was saying._

_Rikuo discreetly coughed twice into his left fist, clearing his throat before replying. "Sie können nicht... loswerden mir... dass leicht." He paused twice, sounding rough and out of practice compared to the other voice, but still trying to finish his sentence properly, with his usual suave. His attempt, however, earned a loud laugh from the possible attacker._

_"I'll be out in a second, Rikuo." More crashes followed, as well as more cursing in the strange language._

_"What was that about?" She questioned. Did the voice try to kill everyone who came in the store?_

_"She only takes references. It's the business and all. If you're referenced, you step to the right, like I told you to. If not... she sells fans." Rikuo explained as pointed to a little box aimed at the door, which Tsurara realized that was a camera, and what Rikuo glanced at when he entered. "She checks everyone who comes in. It's rare for her to throw knives like that, though. She recognized me and the German was to double-check her suspicions. She's obviously had some...unwanted customers coming around, and there's been more than one person pretending to be me. "_

_"But she threw a real knife at you!"_

_"I'm also carrying a sword, Tsurara, and trained to use it. She knows me, and knows what I'm capable of."_  
_Rikuo smirked, causing Tsurara to glare at his cockiness. But then again, it would have to have been hard to be able to dodge that without warning, which meant Rikuo cared enough to warn her of potential death, so her annoyance didn't last long, and was replaced by her previous thoughts of what the two could be possibly getting for Kunai. Considering what she had just experienced, she guessed it was weaponry. Rikuo did have to get his stuff from somewhere._

_More crashing came from the back, before a figure appeared from the back of the store. Her hands were covered in black dust and wrinkled from long hours of work. A dirty apron, and a metal welding mask were both removed, revealing short green hair that looked like fur on her head. Her clothes were equally covered in dust, and she looked as if she had just woken up. Her face was wrinkled from years of smiling, and she looked like she belonged in the kid's section of the library more than a weapons dealer. Dull blue eyes glanced around the room, before settling on Rikuo on the other side of the counter._

_"Bad German...still short and thin...Rikuo! Damn, I didn't even recognize you. You still haven't grown an inch! You look taller on camera." The woman snickered, earning a stifled glare from Rikuo and an eyebrow twitch. "What brings you to the town of Ukiyoe, and to me specifically?"_

_"Business."_

_"Ahhh, Demon stuff huh?" Jun, as she was now called, winked, unperturbed at the short and very curt response. "Since I moved here, business has been great! With the Demons sending in people almost every other day, I've been busy as hell! I've had a few...**interesting** requests, but things have been great. Ukiyoe is never quiet, but that's probably due to the yakuza..."_

_Rikuo chuckled, knowing exactly what she meant. "What are you doing up so early?"_

_"I could say the same for you. I was busy working on some projects last night, and then crashed on my workbench. The phone woke me up a while ago, someone going to drop off some stuff for repairs, and I just opened the store." She said, wiping her hands off on a clean cloth from the counter. Her eyes then drifted around the room, before settling on Tsurara. "And who's the pretty Ojou-chan?" she grinned, making it quite obvious she was thinking Rikuo and her were..._

_"My bodyguard." Rikuo answered quickly, not getting what the women was hinting._

_'Wah... sometimes, it's a good thing he's so dense.' Tsurara thought as she stifled a snicker._

_"What? When did you get such a cutie on your payroll?" The women seemed saddened, obviously hoping for something more between the two. Gang leaders were notorious for being playboys._

_"I'm only here because Rikuo-kun didn't want to bring Kunai." Tsurara huffed, glaring at the green haired women, hoping to set her straight._

_Jun laughed, before sobering and switching to business, "Well, what brings you here today, Rikuo? This isn't a social visit, I know."_  
_Rikuo said nothing in response, only sliding Tora-Oni's sheath across to her. The woman withdrew the sword, looking down both sides and weighing it in her hands. She delicately dragged her fingers along it, checking for any imperfections. Taking a piece of paper, she checked the sharpness of the blade. She froze in her check-over, her eye twitching from anger._

_And if Tsurara had blinked, she would have missed the slap._

_"What the hell have you been doing with this thing?!" Jun asked furiously, her attitude changing completely in a heartbeat, obviously not impressed with the results of the check. "I told you to use it properly, not throw it around like a piece of junk!"_

_Rikuo seemed undisturbed at the physical abuse, as though he had been expecting it. The redness on his cheek faded as he tried to explain himself. "I've been fighting youkai more than usually. You know they fight dirty."_

_"That doesn't give you an excuse! What, has Kunai been slacking off again in his duties?"_

_At the rather accusing question, Rikuo glared fiercely, red tinted brown eyes to her blue, his fists clenched on the counter as he held himself back to give a proper response to her untactful and snide remark, "**He's been doing a fine job, Nozaki-san."**_

_His glare sent chills down her spine, freezing all of her movement, down to her toes. She gasped silently, unable to even bring air into her lungs. It had been a long time since he had called her that, making her realize she had crossed the line. "Don't badmouth Kunai" was the unspoken message. But it was only the expected. Rikuo and Kunai were close, as Kunai was one of the few people that Rikuo could confide in without worry. Nothing was off-limits to the loyal bodyguard. Kunai respected Rikuo, but Jun could see they were more like brothers than master and servant._

_Even though she was twice his age, he still earned the respect and title as leader of the Demons._  
_It was almost pitiful. Like watching an adult lion playing with cubs, Rikuo would only put up with the out-of-line antics for a short while before putting you back in your place._

_The room's atmosphere grew heavy, and continued to grow as though gravity was doubling. With a look of bewilderment on her face, Tsurara realized that was definitely **Fear** that Rikuo was using to hold Jun in place, black tendrils of smoke floating around him. The poor human was turning red, and would collapse if she couldn't breathe for much longer._

_Tsurara had seen many different types of Fear, and each had it's own effect on humans. Some subconsciously sent humans away from the source, others caused humans to pass out upon coming too close. Some enabled youkai to slip by humans with no effort._

_Rikuo's Fear could freeze humans in place, almost as well as her ice could._

_But how could he do that? Was the youkai in him not as diluted as she thought? Did he even know he had such an effect on humans when he wanted to, or he used it on purpose to further his goals and control on those below his rank?_

_She was expecting Rikuo to do something, knowing he would never forgive himself if he accidently killed her._  
_But nothing happened. Jun turned redder and redder, gasping to bring air in like a fish. Rikuo didn't change, unaware of how far he was pushing the human and her limited strength._

_No, that wasn't time to ask herself questions like those, if she wanted to save Jun, who didn't deserve death over such a trivial matter. Tsurara then leapt into action and grabbed onto Rikuo's sleeve, trying to break his control and concentration. Thankfully, her move was enough, and Rikuo soon interrupted the eye contact with Jun to glance at her, looking like he had just broken free from a spell. And when he did so, she almost lost her breath as well._

_But not because his Fear was imposing control over her, but because she had caught the dangerous red glint in his eyes, one that was remarkably youkai-like._

_She watched with widened blue eyes as his own returned to their normal brown while he placed a hand against his heart, trying to slow its racing pace, taking deep breaths to calm himself. Jun, who seemed to have snapped out of a trance, shook her head frantically, returning air and movement to her body, balancing herself against the counter until she could stand. Her face slowly returned to its normal color as she did her best to hide the freaked-out look she was having a second before._

_"My bad." Rikuo muttered, upset at his lack of control, fists relaxing. "Things... are kinda stressful right now. I shouldn't have snapped at you, you didn't deserve it." He looked away, embarrassed at himself._

_Jun blinked a few times, realizing that, for a moment, she had totally forgotten about what had just happened. But it only took a second for her to remember she had received the so-called Demon Stare – the one that could freeze anyone in their tracks. Rikuo had never used it on her before, but she had heard of it, rumors about the source ranging from hypnosis to magic. It was a frightening ability, but it suited Rikuo well. It was, in fact, something that would be engraved in her mind forever – she could feel that much._

_And she couldn't help but wonder if he had ever used it on enemies to kill them quicker._

_She swallowed dryly, remembering that killing was not off-limits to Rikuo. After all, with his natural ability to lead as well as his swordsmanship skills, he showed experience and intellect above his age. Besides, being the leader of the Demons meant his hands were inevitably covered in blood, which meant his baby face hid a ruthless killer that was needed every now and then. But Rikuo's rather unique outlook had also saved many lives, and many more of people who didn't even realize he existed. He was like an unknown superhero, working from the shadows, mainly to protect. But of course, to protect some, he also had to destroy others. And all of that combined with Rikuo's ability to lead and make decisions were the reasons why the Demons were what they were now. Little stood in his way in anything, and those who did would usually ask to join the Demons after. Watching him regain his composure, from a worried and apologetic teenager into a calm and collected leader, only further reminded Jun of all of that._

_She was born in Japan, her parents and grandparents native Germans. Her grandfather loved the culture and weapons of the Japanese, while her parents were less than enthused, even more so when Jun declared she was going to follow in her grandfather's footsteps at the tender age of 5. Her widowed grandfather quickly begin teaching her everything he could, helping her improve, and setting up lessons with native Japanese sword makers, and other types of weapons._

_Her weapon making skill created a rift between her and her parents, so she moved out, ready to face the world that was outgrowing the need for hand weapons._

_Thankfully, she had a chance encounter with Ren Haraguchi, Leader of the Deathside Demons, who changed her whole world around. She was offered a paying position within the Demons, and she accepted._

_She found herself at home with the Demons, and was soon a full member of the Demons, and the go-to-girl for weapons._

_She was in charge of making and handling the weapons for most of the Demons, a challenge she loved. Her income grew steadily, and she could afford to take lessons, and find new instructors to teach her. Trying to make every customer and herself happy, she stretched her skills to the max with no regrets. Everything she made or acquired increased her knowledge. Her pool of references grew every day, and doors started opening themselves for her._

_Although she was close to Ren, she had never really met Rikuo until the day he proclaimed he was the next leader. She had seen the quiet boy a few times, but she had never felt the need to introduce herself. He was a nobody, only recognized because he was friends with Ren._

_This was the same time she learned that Ren was jailed, creating some strife between the leader and herself._

_Rikuo respected her as the Demon's top weapon maker, but she was conflicted._  
_She was upset that Rikuo, who she found to be too young, too immature, too inexperienced, and too shy, was replacing Ren, but there was nothing she could do. She wasn't in the running, and without a proper leader, her beloved gang would fall into ruin._

_She knew everyone else was at a loss for the reasoning why Ren named the 'kid' as his successor, and unrest went through the Demons for weeks. Many other Demons she knew left, feeling Rikuo would be the gang's downfall, while she decided to stick it out for the sake of keeping her beloved job. And who knew, maybe Rikuo could prove himself worthy. Or it would be humorous to watch the kid have a mental breakdown from everything he was required to do. Being a gang leader was not an easy task, and mistakes cost lives. That kind of burden on a teenager was not healthy._

_Either way, she had nothing to lose if she stayed, knowing Yasuo and Fujimoto were right in the backstage, just waiting for Rikuo to make a mistake. And they were waiting. Fujimoto felt she earned the position, and felt resentment towards Rikuo for this._

_But he never did._

_The boy had actually pretty quickly proved himself a worthy leader. He flourished under the position, as though he was meant to lead and soon even the most stubborn Demons swayed to his command. Fujimoto was one of the longest holdouts, but soon even she was swayed by the boy's charisma._

_Rikuo and Jun fought tooth and claw for a short period of time after their first meeting, with Jun finding a way to push Rikuo's buttons at every opportunity._

_Not the best way to make an impression, but that was how she did things. Surprisingly, though, that was the reason Rikuo enjoyed her company, as she was the only one brave enough to treat him like **Nishimura Rikuo,** not the Demon Leader. Eventually, Rikuo made everyone else realize he didn't want loyal followers with no opinions. Everyone realized that even if one defied him, as long as they had a real, honest and thought-out opinion, he was happy to hear it. This was, of course, unlike most leaders who killed those who spoke against them. That was another good point for the Demons – treating people like actual humans was unusual for a gang._

_And it was mostly with that that the Demons flourished. Using Ren's philosophy and growing it, the Demons grew faster than ever._

_Rikuo's personality quickly changed with the burden of becoming the leader placed on his shoulders. Rikuo eventually learned to hide his light hearted, helpful but shy and innocent personality, and learned to mask it with a cool, calm, loyal, commanding, diligent and sometimes snarky personality. His loyalty to the gang grew as time went on, and soon everyone began treating each other as family. A dangerous family, but one nonetheless._

_Rarely could anything ruffle the leader nowadays. If her comment got that much of a response from the boy, then there was something seriously stressing on his mind._  
_She was almost sad, watching the boy's childhood slowly slip away with every person he was forced to kill._

_What irritated her was that Rikuo's true personality, one he learned to hide, only came out around Kunai, the strange and stoic bodyguard who suddenly started showing up with Rikuo one day. He wasn't afraid to laugh, or act like a teenager around his bodyguard. Was he afraid to show emotional weakness around his Demons? That she could understand, but Jun was with Rikuo before Kunai was. She had been there from the start, and yet Rikuo was still cold to her, just like his other Demons. She had watched Rikuo change over the year, so why was she suddenly closed out from him? Why couldn't she talk to the real Rikuo?_

_It made Jun jealous. She was close with both of the leaders, but she found her previous position usurped by the bodyguard._  
_And because of that, she and Kunai didn't get along. Even now they still fought, leftovers from the years before, so Rikuo learned to limit their interactions as much as possible._

_Jun took finding out Kunai's unknown history as a challenge, and such it only took a matter of days before Jun called Rikuo out. Knowing she would only get into more trouble, he told her everything._

_It was the first time Rikuo had come clean to a human, and Jun had never found herself with such a large secret. Though he still used his Demon personality, she was back into Rikuo's life._

_Youkai were real, and Kunai was one, a iguana at that. Rikuo fought youkai, saw youkai, and hated youkai in general._

_She became a rock, an anchor, a human perspective for Rikuo – one to balance out the youkai advice from Kunai and the leadership advice from himself. She was in an almost a motherly position, something she'd never considered before, since her life had always been about in weaponry until then. That also surfaced her curiosity about Rikuo's life._

_She had seen the inhuman way he moved while fighting. The long jumps, the inhuman strength for his height and age, and deadly accuracy he would use._

_She had never said anything directly to him, but she spoke to Kunai, the only person she could, who confirmed her suspicions about Rikuo's real history._

_They both knew there was youkai in Rikuo's history._

_She wasn't sure how to feel about that knowledge. It explained why Rikuo was able to overpower those taller and stronger than him. It still left questions though. She knew Rikuo's family died in a youkai caused fire, so who was the youkai in Rikuo's history? His grandmother, or grandfather? Or was it even farther back? Did Rikuo have any other powers because of this? Did he use them to his advantage as his position as Demon leader?_  
_She was never able to learn anything about him. Her background searches came up empty (there was no birth certificate for that name, which wasn't uncommon, but she couldn't learn his true name), and Rikuo wouldn't answer. He refused to believe there was youkai in his history, and her attempt to learn more was cut short. She was able to find out more about Kunai, for crying out loud!_

_Some time later, Rikuo asked for a new sword with a few specifics, his old one broken in a nasty fight. So Tora-Oni was born, which earned her the right to be treated by Rikuo as an equal, to everyone else's dismay. Rarely had something she made come close to the perfection of Tora-Oni, but she pushed hard to make something better. Since she created a weapon for the current Demon leader, soon she was getting requests from everywhere._

_That had both a positive and a negative effect._

_Her importance soon had gotten over her head, and crazy ideas and dreams sprouted from that. She had thought Rikuo would be mad, or try to convince her to stay, instead of letting her set up her own shop. She had wanted to spread her wings, and she was afraid she would be denied that. A smart leader wouldn't let her go, as she was a valuable member._

_She had been wrong. Rikuo had only laughed hearing her plans, and set her up with a real estate agent in Ukiyoe, before sending her on the way with words of good luck, and a few names to call or fallback on in case of trouble. She still handled Demon weapons, and her fame spread quickly, and she switched to a reference-only policy, trying to weed out the unwanteds or potentially dangerous. She became the go-to lady for weapons in Ukiyoe, and farther if you could travel._

_The last time she had seen Rikuo was almost a year ago, and yet Rikuo had seemed to age by years since the time she waved goodbye and left Hiroshi that day. Something else had been up, she could tell._

_Jun discovered youkai needed weapons as much as humans did, and were willing to pay more, so she quickly submerged in the darkness of the youkai world, without Rikuo's knowledge, and she had almost drowned in it. She had purposely kept Rikuo in the dark, believing she could handle it, against Rikuo's wishes for her to stay clear of youkai, and everything youkai in general. Rikuo had asked her numerous times over the phone, and she lied every time._

_She had forgotten the number one rule of the Demons._

_Rikuo had no proof of her 'other' activities, and he didn't have the time or energy to check up on her, particularly busy with more important activities, such as finding a new head to control the Ukiyoe Divison, someone from his ranks. He had almost sent Fujimoto, but decided she was needed with him to better control the Demons._

_It hadn't taken long for Jun to regret not following his advice._

_She had swore off dealing with youkai ever since she had needed to be rescued from a group of youkai by Rikuo and Kunai, after learning first-hand about the dangers and problems that dealing with ayakashi brought around._

_"I heard the building burned down, and that you can't return to Hiroshi." she said casually, snapping out of her dark memories. While she was at it, her personality dampened, an eyebrow raised, ready to hear the story about that particular incident. She had seen the flames from her house, before finding the report on the news. Thankfully, no one was caught on camera, and the flames burned all the evidence. She suspected the flames weren't on purpose, since it was more logical to move paperwork, not burn it._

_"'Can't return'? What does she mean, Rikuo-kun? I thought you were returning to Hiroshi next week." Tsurara blurted, a look of curiosity on her face._

_Rikuo sighed. He had been hoping to keep that quiet from the youkai. Now that Tsurara knew, it was fair game. Somehow, he knew the Nura youkai would find out before they even returned to the main house._

_"I don't want word getting around, Jun. And the burning was Akiyama's fault, not my idea. The cops got a warrant for me because I wasn't able to deal with the snitch in time, so I'm relocating. I'll change my name to further throw them. Since I've already dealt with the snitch, the trail will go cold and they'll give up. They were never close, anyway."_

_"So, you're going to leave Fujimoto in charge?"_

_He grinned, seeing that Jun was still very involved with gang politics, even though she was skipping out on the monthly meetings. "Yes. I'm going to put Fujimoto in control of the Hiroshi area, and I'm going to take over this location. This means you'll have to show up for Demon meetings. I know you've been slacking."_

_"Yare, yare, what are you going to do? I'm a busy person, you know." She chuckled, before looking up to Tsurara, who was still exploring the store with a look of wild curiosity on her face. The youkai had probably never seen so many weapons before._

_"So, Rikuo, who is the pretty Ojou-chan, really? She's not a Demon member, I can tell that much when she argued with you outside the store, and the look on her face when you used Tora-Oni was priceless, so she's new to your stupid show-off tricks. And she feels...cold, even from here. The way she moves...I'm going to take a guess and say she's ice-related. What do they call them..." She scratched her head, her face scrunched up in concentration. Jun had delved into youkai research, and she had found the old legends weren't as false as she thought them to be._

_Rikuo sighed, a look of irritation on his face. "I thought I told you not to look into youkai anymore. " He growled, his eyes taking on a dangerous look, but only for a moment before sighing. He couldn't hide Kunai's secret from her, so why should he have expected Tsurara's to stay hidden?_

_"That's Tsurara, a Yuki-Onna. She's a Nura Member, and my bodyguard for today."_

_Jun stiffened at the mention, her eyes darting to the frustrated ice maiden. She was very familiar with the Nura youkai, as they lived in the same town. She knew the youkai were rather easy going with humans to a point, but you didn't want to piss them off, or encounter them in an alley at night._

_Or drunk._

_Jun suddenly grabbed onto Rikuo's collar, before pulling him close, not wanting the ice girl to overhear them. Tsurara looked at them suspiciously, eyes narrowed and lips pursed, but she gave them space._

_"What the hell are you doing with a Nura member? She's cute and all, but you had said 'business'. They're youkai, Rikuo, you can't let your guard down."_

_"I lost a bet. Kunai and I have to stay with them for a week. The leader thinks I'm a 'danger' to his kumi, and he claims he wants to change my opinion of youkai." Rikuo scoffed, knowing the extreme circumstances it would take to change his opinion of youkai, and the little chances of said circumstances happening._

_Likely story, Jun had thought, wondering what the true reason behind the youkai's antics were._  
_Did one of the youkai have a grudge against the human from some past encounter? Was this all a front to kill Rikuo?_

_Rikuo had obviously been with them a while, and was still alive. If his death had been the purpose, he wouldn't have agreed to stay, his instincts finely honed to dangerous situations. He was smart enough and knowledgeable enough about murder and assassination attempts (Rikuo had seen through and prevented five, and lived through the two he didn't) to see one coming. Kunai was capable to protect the boy, who was no slouch himself in the defense area._

_"I can handle it Jun. The Nura youkai are annoying, but they seem rather fond of humans, and the leader is at least honorable. It's only a few more days, and then me and Kunai are out of there. I'll be glad never to see one of them." He had sighed, before swatting Jun's hand away, and pulled at his shirt collar, mumbling something about getting new shirts._

_Jun nodded, trusting Rikuo's judgement, although still wary about the leader's situation. If Rikuo trusted the youkai, then she could give them the benefit of the doubt. If he trusted Tsurara enough to bring her and not Kunai, then she put up with the youkai. And considering the the annoyed look of Rikuo's face, she doubted he was happy with the situation._

_Her brain leapt into action, thinking up reasons of why the youkai could be interested in Rikuo. They wouldn't have had the bet if there was a reason behind it. Then her eyes widened, coming to one logical option. One that meant the youkai needed Rikuo alive._

_Maybe a youkai could be related to Rikuo, and had recognized him on sight or name._

_Rikuo perked an eyebrow, wondering if the woman was still listening. "I need something for Kunai." he spoke, ignoring the awkward silence that befell Jun and the room in general. His question distracted her, disrupting her thoughts as she quickly switched over to her list of what she had in the store ready to be sold. She had no reason to believe any of her speculation was true, so she would have to wait and see. She had a customer to deal with, and he couldn't be left waiting._

_"I need a little more specifics on what you want..." Jun said, going over what would be a good match for the reptilian as she vanished into the back of the store, while Rikuo and Tsurara followed behind her._

_The room behind the curtain was a totally different story from the front. It was larger than expected, but felt smaller due to the amount of boxes and displayed weapons. The place had a target on the side wall, with a few knives stuck into it, as well as various other pieces of metal. There was a makeshift bed tucked in the corner as well, next to a counter full of working pieces of metal. The back wall was a giant metal roller door, and there was a forge and anvil next to it, more pieces of metal on it. Tsurara spotted three different types of goggles, and two different welding face masks scattered around the room. There were also broken weapons and pieces littering every available space in the room that wasn't taken up by the large piles of boxes, some so tall there was a ladder to even reach the top._

_But what really made the room were the weapons on display, which didn't include those stored in boxes._

_Rifles, small caliber guns, military grade guns, and other things Tsurara couldn't even name made up about 50% of the merchandise, while the other half was of swords. Katana, Tessen, Wakizashi, Tantou, all kinds of Japanese weapons, ranging in size, color, shape and everything in between._

_There was a few other kinds of complementing weapons as well. Bullets, knives, cane-turned swords, umbrella-turned swords, empty sheaths, bows and arrows, and more various pieces hung on the walls._

_The space on the walls not taken up by weapons were full with notes and diagrams, repair notices, and a large calendar with due dates and other notes. Some weapons Tsurara could tell were made by Jun, due to the little notes tied around the hilt or such, others were plain and held no hint to the creator's identity._

_Jun's life was dedicated to weapons, and it showed in every way._

_"What do you think of this one?" Jun asked, currently hidden behind another pile of boxes, kneeling while searching for something below the target on the other side of the room. Finding what she needed, she threw it at him. He easily caught it and removed the sheath, balancing it in his hands. Then he spun around and threw it, the sharp object flying from his hands, the blade soon sinking into the target a few feet above Jun, who remained unfazed._

_"Ehhh, what else you got?"_

_"What do you need for Kunai, after all? Protection, offensive, defensive? I have everything, but I can't read your mind. You're too closed-minded for that."_

_"Protection. Wrist guards? And I'll get a Tantou for him. Last time I saw it, he had thrown his Tantou into the water after it slipped out of his sheath again."_

_Jun glared, her teeth gritting and eye twitching. She looked quite furious at even the **idea** of one of her pieces being thrown away like junk. "That wasn't one of mine, was it?"_

_"Iie. He got that himself." Something caught Rikuo's eye, and as he spoke he looked over the piece. "He depends on his hands, so I want something to protect them."_

_"Ahhh, I know just the thing." She knee-walked along the ground, moving to a different box near her. How she could tell the boxes apart was a mystery, even to Rikuo._

_Rikuo set the piece down, before surveying the room fully, trying out a few other completed weapons, with Tsurara still looking as well._

_One of the American swords was rather heavy, and it was easy to imagine him swinging it around like a pirate, eye patch and all. He had always prefered heavier blades, so this was only a tad different in shape._

_"His old ones are getting worn. You think you could do something...scaly? It's cliche, but it fits him." He chuckled._

_"Like these?"_

_Rikuo turned and smirked, seeing the offered items in her hands. Two gloves, about 8 inches long, fingerless. The tops of both protectors were covered in a blue chainmail/scale pattern, allowing movement and freedom, while the underside was made of a dark fibrous pattern._

_"It's an aluminum and titanium alloy, a special request, as well as carbon fiber on the underside. It isn't as strong as the top for protection, since you need to be able to move your wrists. The fingerless design allows full freedom, so he can throw his knives without any problems. The buyer never showed up when they were done a couple months ago, and I've been keeping them around since. I hear he was jailed, but that's why I get paid in advance." She stuck her tongue out playfully, before handing the gloves over._

_Rikuo slid one of them on, flicking his wrist to check the weight while pretending to throw a knife. It was heavier than he expected, but it was worth it for the extra protection._

_"And they won't melt, right?"_

_"Unless he gets to 1600 degrees. He'd also most likely be dead, so that's not a problem. Not even the great Kunai could survive that."_

_Jun stepped back to watch Rikuo try on the gloves, a look of curiosity on her face. She was interested to see if the gloves would impress the young leader. In her distracted state, her back knocked into a pile of boxes, falling over, right towards Tsurara, who was still wandering around the store. Jun lunged forward and prepared to knock the boxes the other way, until a certain boy stopped her, his hand on her shoulder. A look of confusion wracked upon her face, confused at his actions. Why was Rikuo stopping her? She knew the boxes were only filled with paper, but they were still heavy and could injure those caught unaware by the fall. She herself had been trapped under an avalanche of boxes before. Jun had been responding to her human instincts to protect another human, an innocent and defenseless little girl._

_Tsurara was no such thing._

_Tsurara turned at the cry of alarm from Jun, the 10 feet tall pile of boxes falling her way. With a rather calm look on her face, she raised her hand, cold air circling around it. Jun watched with surprise, Rikuo with boredom, as the boxes falling towards Tsurara were enveloped in ice. As the ice traveled through the pile, the boxes were frozen in place, eventually leaving a beautiful, squarish ice statue with Tsurara in the middle. She stared at her little master-piece for a while, before turning back to the wall and continuing to look at the weapons._

_"Do you have a Tantou to fit Kunai?" Rikuo asked, visibly impressed and sold on the gloves, but not with the little display of power by Tsurara._

_Jun on the other hand, was quite a bit amazed with it. She grinned, seeing her initial assessment of the girl youkai to be correct, while reaching her hand out, touching the frozen ice as she answered Rikuo, "Of course I do..." Still stunned by the ice, she slowly turned towards the wall, specifically the section of Tantou. She paused, searching for the specific one, before she pulled one sheathed one off the wall. The dark blade contrasted the light wood hilt, and the blade was about 8 inches long, while the hilt was 4. It was nothing special in the looks department, with the blade thin and straight, but Rikuo liked it on sight, knowing Kunai would go for the feel more than the looks anyway. The blade felt light in his hand, and the hilt was small around, good for Kunai's hands._

_"Alright, I'll take it. I'll give it and the gloves to him tomorrow." He said, a hint of sadness in his eyes and face, before perking up._  
_"Oh, yeah. Fujimoto and Yasuo are coming to town within the next day or so. I'll send them over. I'm sure Fujimoto could use sharpening, and maybe Yasuo will find something else you use." Rikuo coughed, before changing grips and giving a squeeze in response, hands held in the center of the two._

_"You mean he's still using...?!" Jun looked surprised and slightly shocked._

_He cut her off, nodding. "Yes, unfortunately."_

_She merely laughed. "Yasuo hasn't changed a bit."_

_"No he hasn't. How much for the two of them?"_

_"The gloves are free, since they were already paid for. The total is..." she mentally calculated. "8,534 ¥."_

_Rikuo withdrew his wallet, before withdrawing said payment. The two exchanged money, and Jun gave a bag to Rikuo to carry the weapons back to the Nura compound. Jun hugged the shorter leader, before watching the two leave a wave goodbye, before closing the door._

_Rikuo had only taken a few steps before he paused, catching Tsurara's attention._

_"Come on out, Kunai. I bet you were dealing with the youkai all morning." Rikuo sighed. "Geez, I can't get anything by you. But, you can't hide your Fear from me." Rikuo smirked, glancing up at the building across from Jun's storefront. A mop of blonde hair appeared on the roof, following by Kunai leaping down from his hiding place on the roof, landing gracefully in front of the two._

_"I wouldn't be your bodyguard if you could, Rikuo-dono."_

_Rikuo playfully messed up the blonde's hair, the quiet youkai only frowning at the leader's playfulness._

* * *

It was also quite a surprise when Rikuo and Kunai showed up for breakfast that morning.

* * *

_Although the kitchen was relatively far away from the main dining room, the noise produced by the hungry youkai was easily heard, even on a day when the number of youkai was small. Youkai would gossip about the nightly happenings, and anything else of interest. While youkai were coming and going all day and night, few youkai missed a meal in the Nura-gumi._

_Tsurara, Wakana, Kejourou and a few other youkai were working as quickly as possible to make breakfast before the hungry crowd got rowdy and out of hand in the kitchen. Tsurara was trying her best not to freeze the food solid, if her ice happened to escape her concentration. While she enjoyed her food that way, the other youkai weren't as happy with her specialized, frozen taste. Though, it did mean she could make excellent frozen desserts._

_"Tsurara-chan, how's the rice doing?" Wakana asked, juggling the other foods cooking as well. The large stove top was full of pots, each one boiling, steaming, or cooking. Feeding the many Nura members, not counting the visitors, was a hurdle that few could face **every** day. But Wakana took this as a challenge, and quickly learned how much to make depending on the number of youkai, and did her best to make sure every youkai was happy, while trying and creating new recipes whenever possible. After a fight, even more food was required. With a little help and planning, it was rare that there wasn't enough food to go around._

_Tsurara checked said pot, and, finding the rice almost done, she replied back, "A couple minutes, Wakana-san."_

_"The miso is almost done." Kejourou reported as she hurried back and forth between the cooking pots, and chopping onions._

_Wakana motioned for Ko-oni, and sent the Soudaishou's breakfast and tea to his room. Her father-in-law prefered his breakfast and tea alone, and was picky about the temperature, so she made sure his was piping hot when it arrived._

_Within a few minutes, the food for the rest of the hungry youkai was ready to go. The three all had boxes stacked high with food, and San-no-kuchi ahead of them to get the shouji doors, as their hands were full with balancing trays. They weren't going to let all the hard work go to waste._

_They were halfway to the dining room, when the noise stopped._

_Like a drop of the hat, the once loud room was quieter than Tsurara had ever heard it at breakfast time, or any meal time._  
_The three women glanced at each other, unsure of what had silenced the hungry youkai so quickly. Had the food taken too long?_

_The door to the dining hall appeared in front of them._

_At their feet, San-no-kuchi slid the door open before vanishing into the crowd of youkai, it's job done._

_Everyone turned to face the food-bringing women, still remaining silent. Some of the kumi members looked angry, others unsure and confused._

_The foodbringer's eyes were drawn to the center of the room, were two unusual figures were sitting at a table by themselves. The table had room for more youkai, but none dared sit there, for a disgruntled looking, eyes closed, Rikuo sat cross legged at the table. Kunai sat next to him, a glass of water in his hand. Both were dressed to go out, and eager for food. Ao and Kuro sat a few feet away, looking as though they were ready to jump into action, but Rikuo, unaware of the fierce glares he was getting, opened one eye, and watched as Tsurara bee-lined for them, and set down two hot plates of breakfast. It was the first time either of them had come to breakfast in the main hall. They had always eaten by themselves in their room, or not at all, so this was a real surprise._

_"Itadakimasu." Rikuo spoke lowly, before slowly digging into the meal. Kunai dug in a bit more ferociously next to him._

_The room burst into noise again, albeit quieter than usual and youkai moved closer towards the table, the two being accepted into the room. Tsurara grinned, before passing out the rest of the plates._

_Rikuo was doing his best to hide his anger, his face twitching as he ate, but he remained quiet as smaller youkai sat across from him, half-staring, half-eating. They were rather curious to see the human, since he was rarely out in the open, or even in the compound at all._

_When Tsurara returned with her frozen meal a short while later, Rikuo and Kunai were gone, empty plates in their place, and the usual loudness of the room had returned to it's normal levels, the two strangers gone._

Other than that, Rikuo seemed to act nothing like a normal human. He wasn't afraid of youkai at all. He actually found the smaller youkai's tricks boring. Some of the Council members, who were more than perturbed at the human's antics, even tried a little Fear that usually sent even the most brave humans crawling away, but found that only earned a fierce glare from Rikuo.

Even the Soudaishou found him odd for all of that.

Only Gyuuki, the Umewakamaru one amongst the Kashimoto, seemed to get a different response from Rikuo, and no one was sure why. He would earn a little nod from Rikuo each time they met in the halls. It wasn't much, and there would be nothing else afterwards, but it was a lot like what the Soudaishou got, respect-wise, how little it was. Gyuuki always returned the nod, regardless of how other people would react at his behavior. Maybe it was mutual respect between the two? But where could it have possibly come from? And when had that started? Did the two already know each other?

Rikuo also didn't seem to mind the fact he was staying with youkai that could kill him in a second, if they so desired. If the Soudaishou had been less specific on his rules regarding the human, Rikuo might not have survived the first night, considering how many youkai he managed to annoy. But Rikuo still disobeyed the rules, returned whenever he felt like it, and even got to have a seat in a Soukai.

That was the only time the Nura members saw Rikuo afraid, when the Soukai started with him sitting next to the Soudaishou. The Kashimoto made it very clear they found it offensive, letting a unaffiliated human and youkai sit in a private Nura meeting. However, as impressing as it could be, the Soudaishou found the whole situation humorous, with Rikuo cursing under his breath the whole meeting, and Kunai trying to keep him calm.

But something that was stranger was the fact that the Soudaishou let Rikuo get away with everything. He had the power to reprimand the boy, who would probably listen and was only taking advantage of the youkai's leniency, and yet he didn't use it. Time after time, Rikuo got off scott-free. He didn't mind when Rikuo and Kunai slipped out without a word, when they returned only at about 2 AM, and he didn't mind Rikuo rudely calling him 'youkai'. The behavior was innocent enough, but it was worrying to the Kashimoto. Every time the Soudaishou was asked about his strange behavior, he only cracked a grin, like he was the only one that should know about such thing. Maybe that "big secret" was also the reason why he was unusually very protective of Rikuo. He sent out bodyguards each time, even if the two slipped them with ease, and made it very clear the human was to be protected, only adding more to the mystery.

And while he did that, everyone was left with nothing but wonder about the same questions. Just what made Rikuo special? Was it the fact that he had youkai bloodline? Or was something else at work, that the Soudaishou was being quiet about it? Did Rikuo know it too, or was he just as in the dark as everyone else? Why did Rikuo seem so used to youkai? When Wakana joined the Kumi as bride, even she flinched a little bit at first, at the sight of some of the youkai, gradually outgrowing it within the first few days. So watching Rikuo not be fazed by anything was odd. Kubinashi, the one that most people found frightening, didn't get more than a chuckle at his name. None of the other youkai were able to scare him either.

Tsurara sighed at everything that was happening, earning an odd look from Aotabou. The two were tasked on a mission of bringing Rikuo, Kunai, and Zen back home before the sun rose, as it was later than Rikuo and Kunai had ever been out before. It seemed quite daunting, searching all of Ukiyoe, but Tsurara felt confident they could do it. If they could find the new Demons building, the search would be over, Tsurara assumed.

She only didn't count on how hard it would be to do that.

They had no idea where it was, so they decided to try and track Zen, as Rikuo normally gave off no Fear and Kunai's was consistently kept under control and close to hidden. Even if Rikuo gave Zen the slip, they would at least bring Zen home.

She still had numerous questions for Rikuo, but he was steadfast in keeping them a secret, and Kunai was even less talkative about Rikuo's history, if that was possible. The questions about him remained unanswered, and she started to doubt they ever would ever be answered, for it was rather impossible to ever get anything from the two and the time of their stay was quickly ticking away. If nothing changed, Rikuo and Kunai would leave, and most likely never been seen again.

And that, as off as it could seem, bothered her much more than it should.

It was very strange, but she knew she couldn't let Rikuo leave. It was more like an instinct, a gut feeling, but she knew it was true, for some odd reason. And she found herself surprised while admitting that to herself. Did she actually care about Rikuo? Sure, he was a rather interesting human, but that wouldn't explain the dilemma of the feelings she had.

Was it because Rikuo reminded her of her Rikuo? Rikuo Nura? The one she had been entrusted with to take care of ever since he was a little baby? The one she failed to protect when he needed her the most? The one that had slipped away from her in a snap and would probably never come back again? After all, the remembrance between them wasn't much, but it sure was suspiciously marking, even with the huge difference of age. They surely didn't share personalities, but their hair, eyes, and some facial features were incredibly similar. Sometimes...sometimes the look Rikuo got in his eyes reminded her of her Rikuo.

Then, could it be...

The Yuki-Onna shook her head sharply, trying to erase those thoughts from her head. As much as she hated to admit it, her little Rikuo-sama was most likely dead. The weight of her failed responsibility stayed with her, and would haunt her forever. After all, even now that everything seemed to have steadied back to place, Anti-Nura members whispered about the downfall of the Nura-gumi, and without an heir, that was disturbingly possible. The Kumi also was still a little uneasy, even after so much time. Back then, they all felt responsible. Accusations were thrown back and forth, blame shifting quicker than the sake went at celebrations.

Rikuo was never found, nor did he return, so the worst was assumed. Everyone lost hope, and even Tsurara had to admit that the worst had happened, although on the back of her mind, she had always had a little hint of her unyielding faith. It was impossible to tell what happened, and Rikuo was the only witness, so the story of what happened that night the Nidaime died was lost forever.

Tsurara still had nightmares, about Rikuo's screams from the garden and her never-ending run to help him. She still yearned for an opportunity to see the cute smile that always graced his face after catching one of his servants in his home-made traps and devilish pranks, or the boy's endless questions about his father, or youkai in general. Almost becoming depressed with such thoughts, she could have drowned in them and completely forgotten about reality, like she had done many times before.

But a powerful and unfamiliar Fear interrupted her thinking.


	10. We're Alive!

**Dear beloved readers/stalkers/Nura fans.**

**Due to the fact Dennou is busy with school/life/everything else, and I'm busy making this chapter perfect, it's taking longer than usual for it to be released. And the fact I'm still recovering from Post-Nura depression is only making things harder. (Thank god for the OVA and omake...)**

**But, it's gonna be _good and worth the wait. Are Tsurara and Ao going to learn the truth?  
_  
**

**_Damn course they are!_**

**It's going to be an epic chapter.**

**No fighting, but a lots of talking and emotions and shit. That's epic, right? Right?**

**We're only a couple chapters away from the end of the Return of Rikuo arc, and a few fillers, with awkward meetings and explanations, then on to bigger things! More fighting! More romance! More BAMF Rikuo! **

**So, thank you to everyone who's stuck with us, and everyone who's just joining us! **


	11. No One Pays Attention To This Anyway

**Sorry for the delay! I was at Megacon 2013 all three days from March 15th to 17, and a day before and after. AND, I cosplayed as... RIKUO. Sorry they are sideways, I was lazy and didn't change them.**

**imgur a/jyVPW**

**Had a blast. Too much fun. Tired, lol. Got to hold a Portal gun, bought a Shizuo and Izaya keychain and Rikuo plush, and people loved the wig (even if they didn't know who I was. I have never had people ask to pet my hair...). I got about 20 people to recognize me, more who took my pic.**

**I hope there aren't any anime coming out in summer that I wanna watch. I won't have time! . This season was the first time I've watched multiple anime as they aired. I'm picky as hell, and it looks like there won't be any good ones this Spring season.**

**This is almost 10,000 words and 24 pages, so the length should make up for the wait. This chapter fought and fought us, and I still feel it isn't perfect, but it's as close as it's going to get.**

**Dennou wrote an excellent section here, so give thanks to her!**

**I hope you guys review. I wanna know how you like the big part of this section. You'll know when you get there... ;)**

* * *

Rikuo only watched, half-interested as Zen checked over the passed out Kunai's injuries once more, satisfied with his own doctoring. Kunai was out of danger for now, his breathing labored but steady. It would take weeks, possibly months for the reptilian youkai to heal, much less be at full strength to do his duty.

Kunai might never fully recover. He might be cursed with breathing problems for the rest of his life from the severity of the injury. Even fetching his own food would be difficult for the first weeks, which would only be a blow to the youkai's stubborn ego. But even so, the slow process of recovery and the after-effects of the injury were perfectly understandable. After all, having punctured lungs combined with the damage from fight was not easily healed, even with youkai healing abilities that put humans to shame.

_Most_ humans, anyway.

Rikuo knew his grandmother, Youhime, had extraordinary healing abilities when she was alive. From what he had heard when he was a child, she had a healing gift that could heal any sickness or injury just by placing a hand on the top of one's head. He also remembered his father had inherited that very amazing ability to heal, but not him. He wasn't able to heal others, but he had noticed that his injuries healed at an unusually fast pace, something Zen had commented about earlier. It was something to be grateful for, since human caused injuries were almost nothing to him, which he encountered a lot as a gang leader while Fear based ones were more difficult.

He wasn't even going to start with that damn wind based Fear sicko's idea of stalking, which was his excuse for fights, and the trouble that incident caused. Kunai spent weeks tracking him down, only for the youkai to show up at the most inopportune times when Kunai was absent. Explaining it to his Demons only made things worse for him.

Rikuo wouldn't be able to leave the kumi without a guard in his weakened 'day side', and Kunai was out of comission for now. As stubborn as Kunai was, he would come around to the Nura youkai, seeing that he shared the same idea with them: Protect Rikuo. Kunai had been shocked to discover his master was none other than the grandson of Nurarihyon, so he was taking it quite well - if a 30-minute argument that only ended when Zen had commented they fought like a married couple could be considered "taking it quite well", that is. Kunai thought he knew everything about Rikuo, and he felt betrayed at his lack of knowledge. It took awhile for him to convince Kunai that not even he knew the truth, something that most people wouldn't believe. But Kunai was not most people, thankfully.

It would take weeks for Kunai to trust anyone else with Rikuo's safety fully, but the flame user would have no choice in the matter at this point. When Zen deemed him healed, then Kunai could resume his duties, if his health was not affected by the incident. Though if he ever reunited with the clan, he was going to make Kunai a very high-ranked position in return for the two years they had spent together and the probably eternal damage his body had received for Rikuo's sake.

Rikuo wasn't defenseless, but he still needed a full-powered youkai to make up for his temporary daily weakness. Besides, having a Nura youkai along would prevent many fights from taking place in the first place. He was surprised his Day side didn't use them for that purpose alone, considering how many other ideas he had on how to use them.

Rikuo could still access his Fear in his day form, which was good against humans, but he couldn't use any of his Fear based powers, which left him at a disadvantage against youkai. He was slower and weaker in that form, and he couldn't handle as much abuse. Being thrown against a wall from 20 feet away as a youkai was something you could walk away from, which you did. A lot.

Humans weren't as lucky, and that kind of abuse meant you weren't, getting up from. Even if he wasn't part youkai, Rikuo would still be in danger from humans, for his gang position alone.

In other words, the _human_ side, the side where the sunlight hit, was dangerous. If a human were to pull out a gun, not even the great Demon Leader could truly defend himself. His displacement-type of Fear was good against enemies, but it was not perfect, nor was it invincible. He could be caught unaware, and while he liked to _think_ he could deflect bullets with his blade, he would certainly try, but it was smarter to dodge and prevent another round from being fired then do something stupid like that. After all, crossing swords was a battle of skill, luck, and perseverance, while a battle between guns was nearly nothing but aim. To be able to take away a life in an instant is too easy, something that's taken too lightly in today's human society. A fight to the death with swords could take hours, not seconds like between gun users. Rikuo despised guns for that reason, and had always pushed his members for less emphasis on them.

He also knew the effect guns could have on their victims, those still living and not as his dayside had been shot twice before. He had been on scene when his Demons were shot, sometimes killed, and the ones who survived complained about the pain everyday. Rikuo thought himself lucky, until he found himself on the wrong end of a barrel. He was shot on different occasions, two times, and still bore the scars from the encounters, mentally and physically. The first time he had been lucky that the shooter had poor aim, the bullet grazing his shoulder, leaving him able to defend himself and disarm his enemy. The other time, it was only thanks to his youkai strength he had been able to survive, with the bullet lodging in a rib and the scar that remained. That rib would ache every so often, a reminder of his pure dumb luck because visiting the ER was out of the question. It was also not something Rikuo wanted to feel again, and he would do everything he could to prevent that, but sadly, it all depended on his Day side.

He glanced towards Zen, who was still stewing over the knowledge he had gained from his story, outrageous it sounded at times. He could tell from the frustrated healer's face that he wanted nothing more than the sun to rise, and _this_ Rikuo, _Nura_ Rikuo, to remain instead. Then there was no need for the charade.

Or, at least, have Rikuo's other side remember everything.

Rikuo was also still concerned about his secret being revealed this early in his 'Return To The Clan' plans. He had hoped for it to remain quiet for a_ little_ bit longer, but he wasn't about to die for the sake of secrecy. He needed Zen to keep quiet. If the whole clan found out before he remembered, he would become an easy target.

If his father's killers got ahold of him _before_ he remembered, he would stand little chance of survival, still remembering the chilling voice from that night. The face of the killer was still fresh in his mind, and he was not going to forget it, and he still blamed himself for it. He had been the one who allowed his father to die, too frozen in fear and confused with what was happening to even call for help. It was partly _his_ fault, and the nightmares only enforced that thought, which had been haunting him since that night. His ignorant Day side was lucky, believing they were nothing more than figments of childhood imagination.

But he knew the truth.

Unbeknownst at that time of his kidnapping, his youkai side stirred for the first time, giving him strength and will to live, despite all his confusion and pain. This was the birth of Rikuo of the night, who relied on his instincts to keep himself and his ignorant Day side alive.

While the Night Rikuo remembered all of the fights, memories of his family, and general youkai-ness, his day side did not. His Day side chalked up the odd memories to dreams and faults of his first abusive parents. Every time he was called upon (a stunning three times) Rikuo assumed he had been saved by the white haired, smirking youkai who appeared every time, unaware of the identity of said youkai.

Rikuo still relied on his innate Fear during the day, which at least kept him in touch with his other side. His personality evolved from years of experience, a mixing of his youkai and human instincts. But he knew it wouldn't be too much longer before his dayside accepted the truth. He wasn't an idiot.

He could already feeling the stir of his human blood awakening as the sun grew closer and closer to rising. When his other side was able to remember everything, he would no longer be 'Night' Rikuo, or 'Day' Rikuo. Rikuo Nishimura would be gone, the mask no longer needed.

He'd be Nura Rikuo, the perfect blend of both worlds.

* * *

Tsurara gasped in surprise, the _very_ powerful Fear breaking her thoughts. The surprise caused her to stumble over her zori. Ao threw an arm out, preventing her from falling onto her face and earning her gratitude with an embarrassed blush to her face.

She realigned her furisode, wiping imaginary dirt off. She had always been a little clumsy, but the Fear was at fault this time, not hers. She pursed her lips, a slight tilt to her head, trying to identify the Fear.

Who was the powerful youkai _trespassing_ into Nura territory?

She was almost angry at the blatant disregard for the Nura's hard earned borders, but it was useless. Since the Nidaime's death and the gradual fall of the Nura Gumi's reputation, there were more youkai trespassing, and little could be done to stop it. It was impossible to find all the youkai who did, especially if they didn't want to be found.

But it was odd since one _this_ powerful was usually a friend, yet the Fear was unknown to her - and Ao by the confusion on his face as well. The more powerful youkai usually aligned with the kumi. If not friendly, enemies were better at hiding their presence, since attracting unwanted attention was a rather stupid move in enemy territory. This youkai was not making any attempts to hide its presence, and such it was either a ballsy enemy, a neutral party, or an unknown ally.

With that said, she was almost going to ignore the Fear and continue on the trail of Rikuo, Kunai and Zen. They were following the last spotted reports of them with the three Tengu's help, until she felt something _else_. Just beneath the overpowering Fear, she felt two familiar Fears. Zen, who was nowhere near the power levels of the stranger, a testament to the stranger's strength and the other was fire-based, she knew it was Kunai's, which meant Rikuo was nearby. It was rather weak for Kunai, though, something worrying to her.

Both the stranger and Zen's Fears were calm, eliminating the possibility they were in battle at the moment. She could assume they were friends, or at least, friendly enough to interact without killing intent. While she was only an attendant, and a young one at that, she still knew a majority of kumi meant it was possible for the Fear to be a member of the kumi, just a rarely seen one. However, Ao was much older, so he could recognize the stranger.

She looked at him, a curious look on her face. He only shrugged, not having a clue. Some help he was, she sighed. But she couldn't really blame him. After all, the strangest part of the Fear was that she felt she _knew_ it somehow, but couldn't place her finger on it. It was so familiar it tickled her mind, only frustrating her. It was like she could reach out and grab the name, but it was vanishing as quickly as the Nidaime was known to.

Something clicked in her head upon thinking that, a surprised gasp escaping her lips.

It was only a moment before she disregarded the idea. She shook her head, knowing that possibility was impossible. The Nidaime was dead, she had seen his both his lifeless body and funeral, and either she or others would have recognized it instantly if it was a fake one. Besides, anyone in the kumi would recognize the Fear, and if it really was the Nidaime, someone else would have felt it first.

But then again, would it explain why Zen was so calm?

No. She would not get her hopes up on such baseless information. But it still puzzled her. Why did the Fear trigger her familiarity? How come she knew yet didn't know it at the same time? Why was it so similar to the Nidaime's? Was it an attempt at trickery? Was Zen falling for it, or being cautious as well?

She straightened up, knowing the stranger would remain a stranger if they stayed on this side of the building.

"Yuki Onna." Ao almost growled.

Her eyes were serious with a hint of concern for the human's safety. Her chore list would know no end if she failed her duties again.

"That Nishimura fellow's gotta be around somewhere." Like herself, Ao didn't care much for the pesky, snarky human. But while she called him Rikuo-kun to annoy him, Ao didn't care for such trivial means. He did plan on getting revenge by being the one to kick Rikuo out of the compound when the week was up, cracking his knuckles at the thought this instant.

"Enough, Ao. Let's find out who's on the other side." With that, the two set off at a brisk pace, clearing the first large fence separating them from the stranger on the other side of the building.

Tsurara had a odd and unfounded feeling she would enjoy this meeting.

* * *

Zen grunted in front of Rikuo, his face wracked with concentration. He knew the Nidaime had a rarely-seen human form and while Zen himself had never seen it, he knew other youkai within the kumi had. In comparison, since Rikuo was only 1/4 youkai, it made sense his human form was dominant. However, what did he think of himself? Did he consider himself human, and his youkai part a bonus (something that gave him superhuman strength, or an advantage over his human opponents)? Or did he consider it a burden, his hatred of youkai still strong within him?

Rikuo listened intently when Zen started to fill him in on the big and important happenings since Rikuo vanished, asking questions and filling in from what he barely remembered. Zen was impressed with how well he was able to follow the kumi's current situation and political problems. Rikuo made connections that not even Zen himself had considered, and only proved to him that even though the partly youkai was raised away from the clan, it was not a bad thing. But then again, he was already used to dealing with the same situations with his gang. There were differences between a human gang and a yakuza kumi (especially a youkai one), but certain situations were the same.

But something still bothered the Yakuzen healer. Rikuo's blood was so diluted that the sun was his youkai side's biggest enemy, only able to hold his form at night. That was a disturbing thought. How could he run the kumi with that human face? It certainly wasn't very threatening, not like the form in front of him.

He snorted at the thought. The day before, Zen, much like the rest of the Nura-gumi had been fearing for their eminent fall due to the lack of an heir, and now he's nitpicking the kumi's potential savior. Even 1/4 of Nurarihyon's blood was enough to lead the kumi. He should be grateful that the young Nura boy returned safely at all. There was always the chance that his weakness could change with training as well. It could be a strength thing, or even a mental thing. That was something to consider at a later date.

Still, that left the question of if Rikuo _wanted_ to take command of the kumi. Zen had yet to see any sign of that idea. Rikuo wanted to return and take revenge for the Nidaime's death, but he didn't mention becoming the Sandaime anywhere in the story.

Four-year-old Rikuo didn't even know he was in the running to become the Sandaime, and such this Rikuo probably hadn't even _considered_ it yet. Revenge and returning to his proper family were hot on Rikuo's mind, not really the future of what came after these two things were accomplished. But he had yet to think further about the responsibilities he would have to take after doing that. Rikuo was the son of the Nidaime, who did he expect to take over other than himself?

As Head of the Yakushi Ippa and an experient Kashimoto of the Nura-gumi, it was his responsibility to inform Rikuo of that rather obvious fact. "Rikuo." he called, drawing the attention of the distracted youkai across from him, who had taken an interest in his personal sword when silence fell finally between the two of them. Rikuo was particularly interested in the new nick that appeared, an eyebrow raised in concern at the damage. He mumbled something to himself, before speaking.

"What, Zen?" He glanced up, acknowledging the bird youkai, before returning his eyes to Tora-Oni. He dragged his fingers gently along the blade, pausing along the damage areas.

After another moment of silence, he looked up again, curious since Zen was still trying to figure out the best way to phrase it. Blurting it out wasn't the right way.

"Rikuo..." Zen started again, before sighing, rubbing his face. Would saying this now offend Rikuo? Would this push him farther away? What if he didn't explain it clearly enough, and Rikuo thought he was being pressured into taking the position? Rikuo already had enough to worry about, he didn't need this as well. Maybe he should save it for the Soudaishou to explain? Gyuuki might even have a better way of explaining it.

No. Rikuo needed to know, and he was the only person Rikuo trusted. As the rightful heir, leaving him in the dark would only cause strife later. Now was the best time.

"The Nidaime..." He began again, this time a little more confidently, "wanted you to choose your path, as you are more human than youkai. He wanted you to have the choice of the life you wanted. Human... youkai... or both." Zen said, remembering Nidaime's words clearly. Kubinashi spoke of it first, but the Nidaime made it very clear what he expected. Not everyone had been pleased with the idea, but it had been respected as much as possible. Rihan himself was conflicted, wanting the best for the mostly human child, but also for the kumi.

Zen also shared this idea, since Rikuo deserved to live life how he wanted. After all, even if he had Fear, he could still live as semi-normal human. That _human_ baby face would never be suited to running a kumi without a youkai form. He would forever be looked down upon as the weakest Nura, and Zen would rather Rikuo live life as a human then deal with that kind of scorn for the rest of his life.

In short, if the kumi never found Rikuo, it seemed like he could be plenty content to life unaware as a human.

It was a sad thought, knowing that one _mistake_, one _day_ difference, one _changed_ decision and Rikuo would have returned on a train home, and the kumi would have never known the difference. But looking at him now, like this, it was nearly impossible that he could chose the human life, throwing away 1/4 of his blood, heritage, and everything else that came with it. It would be difficult for him to fit in with the full youkai, only able to hold his other form at night. There would be talk of him being weak, of course. But it would all be worth returning to his home, with his family.

The one which he rightfully belonged to. It would take time for the kumi to accept the idea, but Rikuo could lead no matter what time of day it was.

Gaining confidence as he spoke, he continued. "The Soudaishou always planned on you taking over as the Sandaime, even if his son wasn't keen on the idea. The position is still open, since until today, no one else has proved themselves worthy of taking it, and the kumi has been led astray." He looked seriously at the young one, who had perked up at what he was suggesting, seeming to have reacted as expected: showing signs that was something he_ hadn't_ considered until now. Sighing at the boy's immaturity, he continued, "The thing is-we need a new leader. Shoudaime is ready to retire, and he wanted his grandson to become the leader. That still hasn't changed, even with your... disappearance. You have been raised away from the kumi, but no matter what, you can't change your bloodline. ¼ of Nurarihyon blood runs through your veins, that blood means you can become the Sandaime."

A moment of silence followed after that speech. Rikuo slowly lowered his head to the ground, deep in thought. And then suddenly, he snorted, before bursting into laughter, aware of the confusion on the bird youkai's face. He had been so busy with other thoughts, he hadn't even had time to _consider_ the idea. Him? The Sandaime of the Nura Clan? The one who hated youkai for years, unaware of his true self lying beneath the surface, the leader of hundreds or more youkai?

The idea was highly amusing.

But Zen was right. He remembered the talks about one day receiving the command, but it had all been jokingly and quickly forgotten, the Nura youkai complaining about him. He was human, they all assumed. He would never grow up to become worthy of taking command, his _human_ ideals and _human_ instincts useless at leading a kumi.

How wrong they had been.

"Zen, I..." he began, making a brief pause. Whether it was just for suspense or if he was just taking a moment to think of what to say, Zen couldn't decide. "I am Nishimura Rikuo, leader of the Deathside Demons. My gang is my _family_. We've been through thick and thin, and solved more problems than I wish came up. They are the reason I'm alive today, which is not something I'm proud to admit. Yasuo, Fujimoto and Ren... everyone pitched in to train me to become the leader, change who I was, and then change the Demons into what it is today. Ren's ideals are spreading across Japan, and probably even farther. Everyone is deadly loyal to me, and I to them. My only concern is of my gang."

A rather long moment of silence followed.

Finally, Rikuo sighed, before looking seriously at the concerned brother. "Still... I'm also Nura Rikuo, son of the Nidaime and grandson of the Soudaishou of the Nura-gumi. I'm 1/4 youkai, something I've despised my entire life. My duty lies with my real family, even if I barely remember them. I'm strong enough now to return now, ready to face my father's murderers when they _dare_ show their faces. I'm not going to allow them to live free any longer. I will track them down, and make them pay for this. My life would be so different if they...if I..."

He paused, fists clenched at the thought, knowing this was better discussed later and with the full members of the clan.

He looked at the sky, which was slowly becoming lighter, knowing his time was running out.

"Bloodlines may run deep, but friends come first. I will revenge Oyaji, and I know the kumi... my family... needs me. I'll accept the position in a few years after my gang doesn't need me anymore and after I learn more about the workings of the kumi."

"I will need a place to stay over here, since I can't go back, ne Zen?" His right eye closed, Rikuo smirked towards the surprised healer in a way, very familiar to Zen.

For a second, just a second, Zen swore he saw the Nidaime in all his glory, sitting across him. The mental image nodded once, satisfied. Zen could only assume he was glad for Rikuo, or possibly the fact that his son was returning home. It could have been a blessing, even.

The image was gone, leaving Rikuo in his place.

His response hadn't been a "yes", but it was close enough. The Soudaishou wouldn't be all that happy with the decision that had been taken, but given the incredibly complicated situation, everyone would have to respect that. Zen just seriously hoped he wouldn't have to keep that secret from everyone and the source of the secret himself for long.

"Well..." the purple-haired youkai began, finally breaking the slightly awkward silence of the place, "this is may be less than I was hoping for, but it's certainly more than I expecte–" he was never able to finish his sentence, which only puzzled the Nura heir even more. But it was only a matter of after his companion interrupted himself that he was able to understand everything.

The two of them had been too careless.

Lost in their conversation, they hadn't been able to feel the presence of other two parties slowly coming closer while hiding their presence carefully. It was easy to conclude said parties weren't enemies, but that was the great problem in the fact they were there – had they been a threat, they could have been slayed immediately, and nothing that had happened right then and there, especially the revelation of the heir's identity, would be allowed to be passed on. But since the two weren't fiends, yet actually Nura-gumi members, there was no way they could be taken as such, or else, everything would only become more complicated. In other words, they couldn't be fought, but couldn't see anything either, or else, they could be able to put two and two together. And so, with something as simple as an exchanged look, both Zen and Rikuo decided it was time for him to flee, for it was their only option.

But it was already too late.

As soon as Rikuo prepared himself to leave the medic and his bodyguard as quickly as he could, a trembling masculine voice spoke hesitantly behind them, "N... Nidai... me...?"

The rough tone echoed through the white-haired young man's head as the single word was repeated thrice or more, his movements stopping as he seemed to have become furniture. With his ruby eyes slightly widened, he dared to turn around after his suspicions of who could have referred to him with the title that had once belonged to his father were confirmed as he was able to hear his old friend almost choking with his words, "A... Aotabou...?!"

"W-What's the meaning of this, Zen-sama...?" in a similar condition of disbelief, the confused black youkai asked, his rather long jaw agape.

The situation couldn't be more confusing to the monk youkai. He wasn't sure if he was going crazy and hallucinating or if what the sight before him was real, but by the looks of it, the second option seemed more plausible, even though it was still quite a bit impossible.

After all, the Nidaime couldn't be alive, so just who was standing before him?

Trying to dismiss the mess of thoughts in his head, Aotabou calmed down a little, up to analyzing everything carefully. The one in front of him really did resemble the late first Nura heir, but there were quite a few differences, which disproved the possibility of the Soudaishou's only son coming back to life. It could either be some youkai trying to use their Fear to disguise themselves as him and failing at some parts, or someone who actually looked a lot like him.

And he was going to find out which was the right option right then and there.

"Who... are you...?" he asked slowly, his authoritative and adamant facade ruined by his curiosity and confusion.

It had taken a little while, but after a lot of thinking in a considerably short time span, Rikuo finally decided to open his mouth to answer the rather patient black man, when his childhood friend stopped him with a gesture.

"It's no use. Tell him the truth." was all Zen could muster with a solemn look on his face and his head down.

Understandingly, the white-haired one directed his ruby eyes straight into the taller youkai's, and, as clearly as he could, he spoke slowly, "I am––oof?!" The ever so dramatic revelation of the truth, however, was interrupted quite suddenly as the gang leader was yet again caught off-guard – this time, by the front. Before he could see it coming, Aotabou was pushed to the side as a figure rushed past him and Zen, straight to the unprotected chest of the supposed second heir, taking all of the air in it altogether. As he looked down, Rikuo was able to figure out by the bluish black hair and white clothes of whoever was embracing him with express force was no one other than the young female youkai that had been assisting him the past days.

"Yu... Yuki Onna?!" Zen couldn't help but exclaim as soon as he recognized the Nura mansion's top aide, blushing very slightly at the sight of her hugging the Nidaime's once lost only child. Although he was aware what she was doing was a far cry from anything related to flirting, the scene was impossible to ignore.

"O-Oi..." placing one hand on her tiny shoulder and another on the top of her head, Rikuo was left not knowing what to do as he felt his chest becoming warm and wet - more precisely, where Tsurara's face was buried into. "you're not... crying, are you?" he asked hopefully, feeling his chest tightening as she lifted her head to look at him, her watery eyes and pink cheeks catching him defenseless.

As well as how she weakly whispered his name.

"Rikuo-sama..." she sobbed softly, her ringed amber eyes staring straight into his confused ruby ones as if nothing else existed in the world.

"E-Eh? Y... you... What are you saying, Yuki Onna?!" Aotabou demanded, but was ignored by the ice youkai.

"You actually... recognized him...?" Zen whispered in amazement.

"What are you saying, Zen-sama?" she asked lowly, not moving an inch to look at the purple-haired young man. "There's no doubt this is Rikuo-sama. His Fear... his appearance... everything in him is Rihan-sama's splitting self. Of course there's no way he can be Rihan-sama if Rihan-sama had been confirmed dead long ago." she spoke rather calmly, contrasting the look in her face as she lifted a cold hand to touch one of the white-haired young man's cheeks. "But Rikuo-sama hadn't. And..." slowly, a smile started forming on her pale lips, gradually growing wider with the memories being brought to her just by staring up at her supposed master's handsome face, "now he never will."

She had almost lost hope.

Within the long time that had passed after the Nidaime's death without the smallest clues about the whereabouts of the young master, the great majority of the clan had already reluctantly given up, and nearly everyone had moved on since then. Only three people were the exceptions amongst everyone else - the clan's founder, the first heir's second wife and the second heir's closest servant. And, amongst the three, the latter was the one that had struggled against the cruelty of the facts the most, grasping firmly onto the belief that, one day, a miracle would happen - that, one day, she'd be able to meet him again.

The one she had vowed to protect with her life.

"I... It can't be..." Aotabou choked, on the verge of sharing man tears. "W-Waka... Waka is... alive...?!"

"And awakened." Tsurara added, drawing back her hand to be able to envelop the rightful Nura heir with her tiny arms yet again, her smile still intact and probably never fading away anymore, for her most impossible dreams had come true.

With his lips twisting a little, Rikuo, in all his bluntness, allowed himself to wrap his own muscular arms around the girl's thin back as well. As he kindly returned her gesture, the aide couldn't help but blush and the two other men in the room, who had been stiff the whole time upon experiencing the earlier revelations, fidgeted and sweat-dropped in embarrassment and startelement.

"O... Oi... Rikuo...?!"

"Rikuo-sama...?" Tsurara stuttered, her arms slowly withdrawing as his grip on her tightened a little.

"Tsurara..." he whispered into her ear, not caring about the slight heat in his cheeks, "I..."

When he took a little too long to continue, she urged him gently, "Y-You...?"

"Kh..." he tried to resume whatever he was about to say, but ended up letting out a sound of what resembled agony, while the sun rays reached his back, black smoke-like matters arising from it.

"Waka?!" as darkness started to surround him and his weight to fall over her, Tsurara did her best to hold onto the passing-out young man as Zen prevented Aotabou from advancing onto him.

"What's happening, Zen-sama? An enemy?!" the black man asked hurriedly.

"N-Nothing of the sort! Just calm down and you'll see for yourse-"

"Wah!" with a thud, the poor Yuki Onna landed on the floor, still firmly holding onto her master. As the darkness started fading as quickly as it had appeared, she tried to move his face to be able to see if he was okay. However, all she could find after the mess was completely cleared was a soundly sleeping chocolate-haired human boy.

Seeing him, Zen mentally face-palmed as he could finally let go of the gigantic youkai next to him. By the looks of the situation, he was going to have a lot of explanation to do. And poor wounded Kunai, who had still managed to stay unconscious during the whole thing, was now probably going to have a hard time (literally) jumping awake from his slumber. What was coming was no good - Zen could tell simply by the look on the aide's face as she opened her mouth a little.

"E... EEEEEH?!"

* * *

Rikuo yawned as he awoke from his slumber, the sunlight hitting his eyes as it peeked in. He blinked a few times, before sitting up, his shoulder sending out pain signals as he sat up.

He... was back in the Nura house. Which wasn't unusual in itself, except for the fact he couldn't remember what happened last night, how he got back, or why Kunai was missing, bed and all.

Last night's memories returned slowly as he sat there grunting, although fuzzy and somewhat blank. The leopard was winning the fight, and Kunai sacrificed himself while fighting. He was losing and then what? He vaguely remembered being rescued, but by whom? Had he passed out from exhaustion?

A feeling of unease over came him. Something... was _different_. Not exactly wrong, but still enough to make him wonder what had happened last night. He could see flashes of the fight, then darkness. It only made his head hurt thinking about it.

His phone rang, startling him from his thoughts. The phone rang again, vibrating on a piece of blue fabric next to him. As he took it and opened it, he saw that a notification that read "13 NEW MESSAGES" flashed across the screen with the caller ID as "FUJIMOTO", which caused him to groan. It was too early in the morning for this.

Early?

Was that really so? How long had he been asleep? Some hours? A day? Longer? A glance at his phone told him he had been asleep for 8 hours or so.

Maybe what was different was the fact that it was the first time recently he had slept peacefully without that nightmare? That could explain it.

He couldn't leave Fujimoto hanging any longer, so he dialed her.

* * *

"Yasuo! Are you going to be ready or not?" She complained, tired of the delay by the 3rd in command.

"I'm still trying to find my keys." He replied from the other room, rather exasperated sounding.

Her eye twitched, knowing the keys were most likely still in his back pocket, the same place he put them earlier. Yasuo was smart, but in some areas he was just clueless.

Yasuo was still packing paperwork, and then they would be leaving from the headquarters together in her car. She also had a suitcase stuffed full of paperwork, some her own, some Rikuo's. He had been falling behind, and she'd like to lighten her own load a little bit.

Her clothes shared with the weapons in the other suitcase, with a false bottom for her matching Wakizashi. Taiyo and Tsuki were heirloom blades older than Rikuo, something that was joked upon often, almost becoming a running gag. They had seen many fights and repairs, but she trusted nothing else with her life. It was a different set of skills to be able to use two blades, and learning to be ambidextrous was not easy. That skill paid off in another way: paperwork, able to sign two things at once.

But this trip was rather troublesome.

For some reason, Yasuo was being rather quiet, and she knew he knew something she didn't. She wasn't sure how Rikuo was going to deal with the cop situation. His house had been doubly checked over, the report on the news. His name or picture wasn't released due to his age, which was a good thing for Rikuo.

She was about to remind Yasuo of where he put his keys, but he beat her to it. "Found them!" Yasuo took life a little more joyfully than herself, and even more than Rikuo, who seriousness could turn the sky gray.

Or it was rumored to.

Rikuo was an enigma. Still was. Two years was not enough time to discover everything about Rikuo, even if she tried. If Rikuo was going to keep something secret, it was going to remain that way. Speaking to thin air was something he was caught regularly doing, but even Kunai was caught doing that. She doubted drugs had anything to do with it, since Rikuo had a strict drug-free code. Other people might make rules to break them, but Rikuo was not one of them.

His skills were unusual, even with the excuse he took lessons from a young age. His knack for dealing with people, and his sword skills made a deadly pair. If only he chose to use those skills for socialising with people closer to his age.

She doted on him, she hated to admit. It was hard not to. There was nothing wrong with being a little over protective, or going out of her way to do something for him. he had enough to do everyday.

How he balanced school, his 'idiotic fosters', and the gang was beyond her.

Kunai was as weird as Rikuo was. Kunai was Rikuo's balance. Without Ren, he needed someone to hold him back. Rarely did he need it, but sometimes...sometimes Rikuo snapped. And Kunai was not afraid to pull him back.

Although it was usually the second in command who filled that role t in a gang setting, she only felt slightly jealous that Ren and Kunai knew more about Rikuo then she did.

Kunai knew Rikuo better. Rikuo acted the same way around Ren. Somehow, Kunai and Ren were in on some secret of Rikuo's that made it easier for him to be around them. Were they more understanding somehow?

She would probably never know, but she was strangely okay with that. She had no right to learn what she wasn't supposed to. But she was willing to accept whatever Rikuo told her when that day came, if it came.

Rikuo and Kunai just showed up one day, and Kuani became his bodyguard with a 3 sentence introduction.

"This is Kunai Morioka. He's my bodyguard. Don't fuck with him."

The two clicked together like childhood friends, and they worked together even better. They fought more battles together then she and Rikuo did. But she accepted that as well. Rikuo was not normal, so normal ways of working and running a gang would change.

Normal was an odd word.

The first meeting between her, Ren and Rikuo was a mysterious one.

She didn't want to admit it, but she was scared that night when they first encountered Rikuo. His aura screamed danger, they way he sized them up, and even though she did not believe in ayakashi or other mythical creatures that called Japan home, she just knew Rikuo was not human. He must have lost his humanity, and was now this crazy killer, or even a bakemono. There was no way he could have fought the way he did, she told herself. He moved like a seasoned warrior, and he was unconcerned with the blood on his hands. It wasn't natural. There was no way a barely-a-teen fought off those men, without killing a single one of them.

Well, she was wrong. He did.

The odd illusion around him vanished when Rikuo realized they were only looking for the people he saved, and not another fight. Instead of the bloodthirsty killer she assumed him to be, that idea gradually morphed to a unfortunate teenager. Unfortunate in the fact weak people liked to challenge him, and they only pissed him off in the process.

She was still unsure of Rikuo, but while Ren explained who he was did Rikuo become a teen who was quick, sharp, and had no problems following Ren's ramblings.

The red eyes were just a trick of lighting, that deathly smirk did not mean anything bad, and he was just as human as they were, she said to herself, repeating that demons did not exist.

It surprised her when Rikuo accepted Ren's offer to join. She expected a delay, or even a complain of him being too young. But Rikuo just grinned and shook hands with Ren .Rikuo was not forthcoming about his past, but not many Demons were. The present and looking to the future were the only things the Demons were concerned with. Yes, background checks were done on those worrisome, but rarely did anything of major concern come up. Ren considered himself an excellent judge of character.

She was still suspicious from the start, knowing there was no way a kid could possess those skills.

She was surprised when Rikuo's personality changed in the presence of other Demon members. The serious and skilled teen was replaced with a shy, quiet boy. Where did the cocky and strong fighter go? Was he like this all the time?

Everyone thought Ren was crazy, letting a kid in, especially one like Rikuo. Ren said he had the skills to prove it, but everyone doubted him.

How could a kid have the skills to join a gang, much less want to?

Rikuo certainly wasn't much to look at. Fujimoto just let the whole thing lie, knowing it would only be a matter of time before his true talent was exposed. He was treated as the kid of the group, and Ren didn't even make him a seat in the hierarchy, only furthering the crazy idea. If he really was that good, why wasn't he ranked?

Only when someone challenged him to a fight did he finally gain some credibility. Everyone turned out to watch. The one who challenged him was a middle ranked member, one whose skills were good enough to be on the hierarchy, but not any higher.

Everyone assumed Rikuo was trying to get himself killed when he left his sword on the side, and went against the man weaponless, going against the 180 pound man to his barely 100 pound frame. The man felt cocky enough to use a dull sword, saying it would be a 'quick fight'. Bets were made, and only two people voted for Rikuo.

Fujimoto, and a man named Yasuo Kazuma, a 5th seat.

They split the winnings between them.

The challenger ended up flat on his back, not used to the smaller opponent and his nimbleness. Rikuo was quick, and he used his opponent's weight against him, knocking the man out.

"Never underestimate the short ones." He had mumbled, only repeated by a bystander so everyone could hear. Everyone challenged him after that for a challenge in height, and later sword skills. No one else wanted to face a shorty in battle and lose, so Rikuo was the perfect training partner.

Many tried their skills against Rikuo in a serious battle, but those who did usually regretted it. Only those with skills worth bragging about (but didn't) won against Rikuo. Rikuo took every loss as a lesson, and learned from it, getting lessons from those who did beat him.

But this still didn't change the boy's personality. He had no reason to be shy, but rarely did the boy say anything. He was usually running off, sometimes for Ren, sometimes not.

He remained off the hierarchy, and she wasn't sure if it was Ren's or Rikuo's doings. Maybe he felt no one would listen to him, or didn't want the burden of being in charge? Maybe Ren felt the orders would be ignored? Whatever the case, neither of them seemed to mind.

Ren spent day after day trying to learn something about Rikuo, taking the secretiveness as a challenge. She suspected Ren did found out what he wanted, since the attitude changed between the two of them.

Until Ren left, the true Rikuo came out only around Ren, the one she saw that night of the attack, but it was not because Rikuo wanted to hide it.

The snarky, spunky, clever and dangerous Rikuo was the same shy, almost invisible Rikuo that everyone knew. The one who rarely spoke, mostly mumbled, and spent his time with Ren. The one who no one was afraid to talk around, and who could easily pick up on gossip. He was known to stand in the middle of a conversation, and only those outside the conversation noticed him.

The same one who planned an attack on an opposing human trafficking gang, lead the assault, and escape with barely an injury between the whole group.

Ren was using Rikuo, which was why he was always on top of everything happening, from pregnancies to deaths, and everything in between. Rikuo could get the juiciest facts, and it kept Ren in the know. Rikuo in return got a place to learn and train, have intelligent conversations, and an hour or two quiet in Ren's office while the two of them did paperwork and homework.

She was still unprepared when Rikuo was chosen to replace Ren, and everyone felt she was the logical choice. She was even more surprised when Rikuo accepted the position. She was sure Rikuo would drop the position in a few months. He was only a teen, after all, and that much stress was not healthy. He wasn't fit to lead, and he was only kid.

Some people became leaders through experience. Most of the famous leaders learned from their mistakes, paired with some other talent or knack, became...well, famous.

Others were _born_ that way. The charism, the cleverness, the IQ, the natural talent, everything just comes together, creating someone born to lead.

Rikuo _became_ the Demon leader. There was no hesitation in his responses, no questioning of his decisions. He ruled the gang as well as Ren did, the leadership came naturally to him. She remained 2nd, and Yasuo Kazuma became the 3rd when the previous one retired.

Together, the Demons flourished.

Rikuo had not answered, and every minute ticking away only made the worry worse. Even the usually unshakeable Yasuo was worried, and they moved their train up to as early as possible. They would head straight to the Demons branch, and go from there, looking for Rikuo through all of Ukiyoe if needed. She was not jumping to conclusions until evidence was found, but she would worry until then.

Rikuo's behavior had been odd since he left. On edge, snappy, easy to anger. But his behavior was only getting worse. Members called in, saying Rikuo had vanished without a trace. The usual Demons _first_-questions _later_ leader was _missing _and no one knew where he was, or staying, or anything!

She could think of nothing that should cause him to vanish. And then, when the building was attacked, he showed up 20 minutes _late_. What was more important than his gang, the ones he called _his family?_

So when her phone rang next to her suitcase, she dove for it before the first ring silenced.

_"Fujimoto? Is everything alright?"_

"Rikuo-sama? Is everything alright? Is everything alright? You're the one who's vanished!" She swallowed, her worry and shock come through a little thicker than she liked.

_"I've been busy, sorting things out."_ Evasive and somehow foreboding. Not a good mix.

"What things?" Her voice shrilled over the phone.

The response was quick, telling her to back off. _"Things I'll tell you about when you get here."_ It almost _hurt_, for him to say that to her. Rikuo knew they were trustworthy, but he was keeping secrets. Secrets that Yasuo was in on, she couldn't be sure.

"We changed our train departure time to earlier. We should arrive at the station at 7."

There was a pause on the other end, and a grunt in response.

_"Oh. I'll be there at the station to pick you up."_ His sentenced dissolved into a hiss of pain.

She had one last attempt to get him to come clean before they arrived. "Rikuo-sama, is everything alright? Just because you're the leader does not mean you have to handle everything by yourself."

There was a long pause, and she could see him mentally working out what she meant, before he spoke. _"I'm fine, Fujimoto. What train will you be arriving on?"_

She rattled off the specific time and location.

_"I'll be there to pick you up. Call me if the train gets delayed."_

"Alright." She paused, before speaking again. "Be safe." The phone went dead without a response, and she sighed, before hanging up. That last line was unnecessary, it was undermining his authority. Of course he would be safe, Rikuo was not one to sacrifice himself unnecessarily, and with Kunai there...

He would be fine until they arrived.

"Yasuo! Rikuo just called. Are you _sure_ you don't want to tell me what's going on?"

* * *

He hated lying to them. He almost wanted them not to come, or create an excuse to put it off till tomorrow, give him time.

He needed time to think. He needed time alone away from the youkai. But doing that would only further the idea that his priorities were slipping, which they were, but he wasn't going to admit that. As soon as he left this place, everything would be fine.

At least, that was what he kept telling himself.

He couldn't even imagine leaving the gang. Ren trusted him with the safety of the Demons, he couldn't betray the first leader now.

It was all the youkai's fault. They dragged him into this...

This whole thing stunk. He knew there were hidden reasons for Nurarihyon's interest in him. The reason eluded him, but the idea kept him on his toes, always aware...

"Hello, Rikuo-sama!" he jumped in surprise as the door was pushed open, temporarily blinding him. When his eyes adjusted, Tsurara stood before him with a triumphant grin on her face, and a tray of food in her hands, "I've brought you lunch. How are you feeling?"

Ever perky, he wished he could retain some of her optimism sometimes.

This was unusual, to say the least. Tsurara... was bringing him food? And she was happy? Wasn't she barely tolerating him yesterday?

"Tsurara? What are you doing?"

"I'm...bringing you lunch?" She set down the tray next to him. "Because you must be hungry? I mean, if you aren't, I can always come back..." Her face shifted from happy to slightly embarrassed as she spoke, unsure of what he meant by the question.

"No, I meant why. Why did you decide to bring me lunch? What happened last night?"

"You... really don't remember?" She tilted her head, a look of confusion and sadness.

Zen had explained everything to them last night on the slow walk home, and it was quite a story. Rikuo had not had an easy life, which also explained his hate of youkai. It only upset Tsurara. They had failed Rikuo. They let the Nidaime's killers and Rikuo's kidnappers escape alive. If they hadn't been celebrating that night, if they had a guard with Rihan-sama... It was their fault Rikuo grew up alone with the humans. How different would Rikuo be if he grew up with his family? Would he be kinder to youkai? More attuned to his youkai side?

On the other side, was this fate? Was Rikuo supposed to be kidnapped? Was he supposed to meet Kunai, and hate youkai?

It was an odd thought, but she couldn't prove it either way. What happened was past, and now they had to fix the mistake they made. It was their duty to help Rikuo readjust to his true life, and living with youkai.

She didn't care. She'd be faithful and protect him anyway, even if he hated it untill he remembered.

"I remember most of it. I passed out, right? And then you came, right? What happened when you found us?"

"Aotabou and I found you fighting against the leopard youkai, and we were able to defeat him together. Zen-sama bandaged you up, and we brought you and Kunai home. You've only been asleep for a few hours."

His eyes narrowed at her, feeling the shift as she switched from the truth to lie. While he wasn't as good as Ren as deciphering human emotions, Tsurara was easy to read. She blushed when she lied, and she would rub her hands together a little...

How did he know that? He'd only spent a few days with her, how would he know that?

Hmph. Maybe he was getting better that this reading thing...

Tsurara faked a grin, trying her best to stick to the pre-planned lie. She kept hitting herself over the head wondering why she didn't figure it out before. With the brown hair, it was stupidly easy to see the resemblance. Even though he was older, the facial expressions were the same.

"What about Kunai?" He asked sullenly, his face distracted with something.

"Kunai-kun is fine, and Zen-sama says he'll be able to be moving around in a few days. He's worried that Kunai-kun's lungs won't heal right, especially if Kunai-kun keeps moving around so he's keeping a close eye on him. He's staying in Zen-sama's room until he says Kunai-kun is in the clear. He won't be able to go with you on your errands, so Zen suggested that so one of us will with you instead. Since Aotabou is busy today, I'll be accompanying you." she grinned at little too happy for Rikuo's taste.

"Where did Rikuo-sama come from? Why are you being so friendly all of a sudden?" He asked suspiciously, glaring at the ice youkai.

Tsurara scratched her head sheepishly, her thoughts freezing instead of thinking of an excuse. "Etto...I felt that Rikuo-sama deserved to be called Rikuo-sama! Excuse me, but I have chores." She almost ran from the room nervously, leaving the door open. Small youkai peeked in, but they quickly left after receiving a glare from him.

With a look of stunned confusion, he turned towards the plate of food, his thoughts returning to last night. Yasuo and Fujimoto would be here in two hours.

How was he going to explain everything? How was he going to explain about his losing bet? Could he explain that without explaining youkai and it still make sense? He groaned at the thought. Both Yasuo and Fujimoto were stern believers in science (he was as well, but magic was a better explanation for many youkai abilities then science was.) and he hoped to never reveal youkai to them. Ren was an accident, but he felt the two of them wouldn't take it as well as Ren would.

Rikuo swallowed a bite of food, which was actually pretty good for Tsurara's cooking as another, potentially bigger, problem came to mind.

How was he going to explain _Tsurara?_ At least with Ao, he could pretend he was a Demon member, but Tsurara? She looked more like a girlfriend than a Demon member.

And there was no way in _hell_ he would pretend to be a couple. That was out of the question. He'd have to come up with a better lie before then.

He rose from his bed and closed the door, before stopping in front of a mirror. He looked fine, other than the bags under his eyes. His sleep was becoming more and more disrupted.

The dreams were odd. Things that were familiar, but not at the same time. Strangers who pulled at his emotions. It was a very surreal thing, to say the least. It was like watching stuff happen through someone else's eyes.

The strangest one was when Tsurara appeared, looking the exact same as today.

His eyes were drawn down to the rest of his body, and the clothes covering it. Where did he get this yukata? And when did he, or more correctly, _who_ had put it on? He really hoped it was Zen. _Really_ hoped so. He couldn't bear the thought of anyone else doing it. At least Zen was a _doctor,_ or close enough.

On a brighter note, the yukata was surprisingly comfortable, not restrictive at all, and it hid the bandages from the eyes of his subordinates. He had never time or money to buy one of his own, so this was new for him.

He glanced behind him, remembering where his phone sat to the piece of fabric. He picked the blue fabric up, finding it to be a haori, and being careful of his shoulder, put it on. Considering his clothes were either torn apart or dirty, he would have to make due with this.

Hopefully his clothing change wouldn't be too odd.

With time slowly ticking away, he returned to his meal and preparation to leave.


End file.
